Is load shedding ending soon? Here is what we know
Should South Africans breathe a sigh of relief? Seemingly, there is a light at the end of the tunnel regarding load shedding.
Is load shedding ending soon? Electricity Minister Dr. Kgosientsho Ramokgopa says South Africa is beginning to turn the corner in resolving the energy crisis.
Ramokgopa said this during a briefing on implementing the Energy Action Plan.
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LATEST ON LOAD SHEDDING IN SOUTH AFRICA
Eskom has suspended load shedding between 05:00 and 16:00 mostly and only implementing lower stages at night.
During the briefing, Ramokgopa said South Africa is beginning to show sustained improved performance over an extended period.
“We have turned the corner, although we are not out of the woods yet. This is good news in that it’s an affirmation and validation of the work that the team is doing at Eskom,” he said.
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Ramokgopa said the intensification of maintenance plans at Eskom is beginning to have a positive impact despite a difficult period in September when load shedding was intensified due to maintenance outages.
The minister said the maintenance outages aim to reduce the incidence of generating units tripping on their own and improve performance.
“These plans that have been put into motion are beginning to bear fruit. I did indicate some time ago, when we were experiencing heightened load shedding Stage 6, that we are dealing with short-term pain, which will result in long-term gain. We are beginning to see the kinds of progress that I was referring to.
“Our actions are deliberate. We will invest much of our efforts to ensure we can maintain the units,” he said.
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KUSILE POWER STATION UNIT RETURNS TO SERVICE
Earlier this month, Eskom confirmed that the first unit, amongst the three impacted by the collapse of stacks in October 2022 at Kusile Power Station, has returned to service.
According to the power utility, Kusile Power Station Unit 3 returned to service two months ahead of schedule and will improve the available generation capacity by 800 MW’s once loaded to full capacity.