The first unit of the Medupi power station is finally adding electricity to the South African power grid, but there is a long wait ahead before the next unit is ready to follow.<\/p>\n
On \u00a02 March 2015 unit 6 at Medupi started producing power for the first time, marking the end to\u00a0years of delays hindering the switch-on.<\/p>\n
\u201cWithin the next three months, South Africa will see Medupi unit six\u2019s full potential of 794MW being fed into the South African national grid,\u201d\u00a0Eskom chief executive Tshediso Matona said.<\/p>\n
According to Solidarity, the next unit planned for synchronisation at Medupi – unit 5 – is only expected to start up in March 2017.<\/p>\n
In the 6 months following that date, the rest of the units are expected to be lit up, Solidarity said.<\/p>\n
According to Johan Kruger, Solidarity deputy general secretary, electricity consumers should keep in mind that, amid the negativity surrounding load shedding, Eskom employees are constantly doing their best to keep the lights on.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can attest to the fact that hundreds of loyal employees, many of them our members, have worked their fingers to the bone to complete the synchronisation of Medupi\u2019s Unit 6.”<\/p>\n
“Although the country will be burdened with load shedding for a long time to come, we will at least be able to console ourselves with the fact that there actually are people working day and night to try to meet the country\u2019s electricity needs,\u201d Kruger said.<\/p>\n
Medupi\u2019s total output of 4764MW is expected to be synchronised to the grid by 2019.<\/p>\n
Medupi, which started construction in 2007, was first set to come online in mid-2013, after a number of technical, labour, and manufacturing issues hampered progress.<\/p>\n
The much-delayed Kusile power station was supposed to come online in 2014, but its 6 x 800MW units are now expected to come online in 2020.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, EWN has reported that\u00a0a\u00a0renewable energy power plant in the Northern Cape has also gone online\u00a0this week\u00a0– producing 100MW of energy.<\/p>\n
This is the equivalent of powering 80,000 households, the news organisation said.<\/p>\n
Despite the\u00a0progress,\u00a0Eskom has warned that the grid remains under severe pressure. The risk of load shedding during the week remains medium-to-high, with particular strain expected in the evenings and heading into the weekend.<\/p>\n
Medupi produces first power<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Medupi unit six coming online in the next month<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Medupi issue could put SA power at risk: expert<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n