South Africa is in the throes of an energy crisis that shows no signs of abating. With Eskom’s recent announcements and the Electricity Minister’s statements – that we will endure more pain now in order to gain later, it’s abundantly clear that load shedding is far from just a temporary inconvenience but rather a chronic, long-term issue that needs immediate attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Compounded with the skyrocketing costs of diesel, the situation now calls for an urgent and radical rethink of how we approach energy consumption and generation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the 5th Sept at 5am, Eskom announced that Stage 6 was upon us once again. The reason for this escalation is twofold: an increase in planned maintenance from 3,000 MW in June to 6,000 MW in September, and a series of generation unit failures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The utility also reported that breakdowns currently stand at 16,572 MW of generating capacity, while the capacity out of service for planned maintenance is 6,287 MW. With an almost 4:1 split of unplanned outages vs planned, it is clear that Eskom is still on the back foot regarding maintenance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This despite the assurances from Cyril Ramaphosa in July last year that Eskom will double down on maintenance and that load shedding will be \u201ca thing of the past in 12 to 18 months\u201d – a phrase he has offered as hope to the South African people in both 2017 and 2015 regarding our ongoing energy crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa confirmed that the lack of maintenance at Eskom’s generating units is now causing major grid failure, and so the return to Stage 6 load shedding is due to a combination of increased planned maintenance and unplanned losses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Minister mentioned that the situation is exacerbated by increased user demand and pumped storage losses and stated that the power utility needs to maintain its assets as part of the conditions for the National Treasury\u2019s R254 billion debt relief strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the Minister, the country faces problems from a third avenue: user demand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While the winter demand profile peaked at 33,000 MW, the summer demand profile is currently tracking higher than anticipated, adding even more pressure to the grid, which could result in load shedding escalating further with the outlook for the summer season, load shedding between stages 4 and 6, similar to last year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The wholesale price of diesel is seeing a record increase of R2.84 a litre. This price hike is attributed to lower shipments of Russia\u2019s Urals crude oil and rising demand ahead of the winter season in the Northern Hemisphere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Given the frequent and unpredictable nature of load shedding, many homes and businesses have turned to diesel generators as a backup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, with the recent price surge, running a diesel generator has become financially untenable for the average consumer consequently snookering the consumer and business owners who rely on this alternative power source.<\/p>\n\n\n\n