Eskom to Boost Capacity by 2,500MW by August, But Load Shedding Remains a Threat – Ramokgopa

Cape Town – Minister of Electricity and Energy Kgosientsho Ramokgopa announced on Monday that South Africa’s power grid is set to receive a significant boost by the end of August, with an expected addition of 2,500MW from Eskom’s fleet.

Speaking at a media briefing in Pretoria, Ramokgopa detailed the upcoming contributions: “We are expecting Medupi Unit 4 to give us 800MW and to fire up Kusile Unit 6, which is another 800MW. We are hoping to get an extension of life for Koeberg Unit 2… which will give us an additional 980MW.” He added that “by the end of August this year, just from the Eskom fleet, we should be getting an additional 2,500MW.”

Despite these advancements, Ramokgopa cautioned against premature optimism regarding load shedding. “I really want to caution that load shedding is not behind us,” he warned. “In the next three weeks or so, Eskom will be sharing what the summer outlook is. We are still buoyant about the performance of these generation plants, but we need to caution against any early declaration that load shedding is behind us.”

The Minister also highlighted improvements at key power stations, including Tutuka, Kendal, and Kriel, where significant reductions in unplanned capacity loss factors have been observed. Ramokgopa stressed the importance of ongoing efforts and leadership changes in driving these improvements, indicating that while progress is being made, the battle against load shedding is far from over.

AI was used to generate part or all of this content - more information