Eskom Lessens Load Shedding Severity, but Gives Cautionary Outlook

Return to Previous Load Shedding Patterns

Eskom, the power utility, has announced that it will revert to a previous pattern of load shedding this week. This shift follows the recent increase in outages spurred by an abrupt cold snap.

The utility will maintain load shedding at stage 2 until 16h00 on Monday (17 July). Following this, it will amplify to stage 4. Beginning Tuesday, load shedding will deescalate to stage 1 from 05h00 until 16h00, shifting to stage 3 until 05h00 on Wednesday. This cycle is set to repeat until further notice.

However, Eskom has issued a warning: power demand is anticipated to rise as the weekend approaches. The company has urged the public to curb this by moderating their energy usage.

Load Shedding Schedule Details

The upcoming schedule is as follows:

• Monday, 17 July:
  • Stage 2: until 16h00
  • Stage 4: 16h00 to 00h00
• Tuesday, 18 July:
  • Stage 4: 00h00 to 05h00
  • Stage 1: 05h00 to 16h00
  • Stage 3: 16h00 to 00h00
• Wednesday, 19 July:
  • Stage 3: 00h00 to 05h00
  • Stage 1: 05h00 to 16h00
  • Stage 3: 16h00 to 00h00

Updates on Power Generation and Capacity Constraints

Currently, breakdowns have decreased the generating capacity to 15,747MW, while planned maintenance accounts for 1,946MW of offline capacity.

Since Friday, Eskom has managed to bring back online one generating unit each at Kriel, Lethabo, Majuba, and Matla, and two at Arnot power stations.

However, delays in bringing back a generating unit each at Kendal, Matla and two at Tutuka power stations are still impacting the power grid.

Eskom assures the public that its teams are tirelessly working to restore these units to full capacity. The utility stated: “Demand for electricity is expected to increase towards the weekend. Therefore, we appeal to the members of the public to assist in reducing demand by switching off non-essential appliances,” reinforcing its call for prudent energy use.