If you had told us at the height of stage-6 load shedding last year that Eskom would not only suspend its rolling blackout program (for 150 days, 7 hours and 48 minutes, but who’s counting?) but also roll out its own electric vehicle (EV) car chargers in 2024, we would have laughed in your face.

Yet both have now happened with the state-owned power utility partnering with Gridcars to launch several new EV car chargers across the country.

Eskom joins the EV industry

The power utility has rolled out a mix of direct current (DC) fast charging chargers that’ll supply up to 60kW of juice along with alternating current (AC) chargers, good for providing 22kW of energy.

The power provider says these chargers are “optimally sized to cater for overnight charging of fleet vehicles and daytime workplace charging for employees and visitors.”

You read that right, Eskom’s pilot project also includes “the procurement of 20 electric vehicles ranging from light delivery vehicles to light trucks for operational use,” reads a press release.

There are currently only ten charging stations at five sites so far. Those include the Eskom Academy of Learning in Midrand, Gauteng as well as a site in Brackenfell in Cape Town, Mkondeni in Pietermaritzburg, Tlhabane Customer Network Centre in Rustenburg, and the Marathon Customer Network Centre in Mbombela.

Eskoms says the sites are the starting point for its “long-term strategy to electrify its entire fleet by 2040.”

“This initiative will serve as a blueprint for the future rollout of electric vehicles across Eskom’s entire fleet. It is one of the levers that will steer the organisation towards net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and will also contribute to stimulating the local EV market,” said the utility.