Lights Out as Stage 2 Load Shedding Kicks in for South Africans Until 10pm Tonight

Eskom are once again implementing stage 2 load shedding in South Africa – it kicked off at 9am this morning and is due to last until 10pm this evening… as the power grid remains constrained.

“While Eskom teams have today and yesterday successfully returned three-generation units to service, a further three units tripped, two of which have returned,” Eskom said on Wednesday evening.

According to the power utility, three generators returned to service at the Duvha, Tutuka and Hendrina power stations, while a single generation unit at Tutuka failed.

“Unplanned breakdowns stand at 12 100MW of capacity, adding to the 4 350MW currently out on planned maintenance,” Eskom explained.

“Any further deterioration in the generation performance may, therefore, necessitate the escalation of load shedding at short notice.”

Power cuts are expected to continue for the rest of the week, as the old generation infrastructure is unreliable and volatile and cold weather persists, Eskom added.

“We urge the people of South Africa to help reduce electricity usage in order to assist Eskom to reduce the instance of load shedding and keep the lights on,” Eskom pleaded. – SAnews.gov.za