Eskom will restore uninterrupted power by the end of the week, electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa assured SA on Sunday shortly after the state-owned power utility instituted a shock return to stage 6 load-shedding.
Stage 6 load-shedding is the highest level of controlled power cuts used by Eskom to ensure the grid remains stable, with each level corresponding to 1,000MW shed from the grid.
SA has confronted a series of energy crises since 2007 as its ageing coal-fired fleet failed to keep pace with demand. Power cuts became a regular feature of life in 2023, but a series of government interventions and an increase in independent power production saw load-shedding suspended for 10 months between March 2024 and January this year.
At 5.30pm on Saturday, Eskom announced it was implementing stage 3 load-shedding and then upped it to stage 6 on Sunday.
The power utility had ruled out foul play as it had identified a series of technical problems that led to units failing at the Majuba, Camden and Medupi power stations, said the minister.
“The evidence before us is that this is a technical issue... there is no sabotage,” he said.
Ramokgopa apologised for the load-shedding, saying it was an inherent risk associated with Eskom’s aggressive maintenance programme. Eskom steps up planned maintenance in the summer months when demand for electricity is at its lowest. Units that generate a combined power of 7,500MW are now out for planned maintenance, he said.
Urgent work is under way to bring Majuba, Camden and Medupi back online, and Eskom officials will reassess the situation on Sunday night, said Eskom CEO Dan Marokane.
DA spokesperson on electricity & energy Kevin Mileham said the abrupt return to stage 6 load-shedding indicated that SA could not rely on Eskom to be its primary source of electricity.
“The over-reliance on Eskom to maintain and build new generation capacity has led to the creation of a monopoly of supply, and what is essentially a single point of failure.
“SA urgently needs to open its electricity supply sector by accelerating the renewable energy independent power producers procurement programme and incentivising the private sector to become more actively involved in addressing our electricity needs,” he said.
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