Charge up those power banks, download a few podcasts, and settle in; Eskom has officially announced the return of Stage 2 load shedding. Fortunately, Eskom hopes to kick load shedding to the curb by Thursday, meaning Saffas will only have to put up with power cuts for three days – assuming all goes to plan.
Eskom has at least provided residents with some warning of the impending power cuts, with Stage 2 load shedding set to go into effect this afternoon at 16h00, lasting until 22h00. This schedule will remain in place until 22h00 on Thursday, 15 May, after which the country will return to enjoying their power, full-time.
Going through the motions
“This decision follows the delayed return of generation units amounting to 3,120MW, as well as an additional loss of 1,385MW in the past 24 hours due to unplanned breakdowns,” it said. “The primary reason for this setback is the delay in returning several units from planned maintenance.”
This is despite Eskom’s constant reassurances that this Winter will not be like other Winters. Eskom claims the grid is currently more sensitive to ‘unexpected disruptions’ due to an intensive maintenance cycle, supposedly necessary to keep things running in the long term, with the only downside being a lack of flexibility in the short term – and of course, the return of load shedding, even if only for a few short days.
“Our new Operational Excellence Programme is key to restoring performance. We are reinforcing oversight, strengthening accountability, and aligning service providers with stricter performance standards,” said group chief executive, Dan Marokane. “This forms part of our broader drive for consistent improvement through Systems, People, and Processes.”
Marokane, at least, has a positive outlook for the future. He insists that the delays in restoring units to full power are “being addressed with urgency by senior leadership.” Looking forward, Eskom is currently hard at work on adding 2,500MW to the national grid, which would take off some of the immense pressure Eskom is under.
“Eskom will continue to monitor the system closely and provide updates as conditions evolve,” it concluded.
