Joburg spared from Stage 2 load-shedding

JOBURG – Eskom said that they will use the weekend to replenish dam levels for pumped storage schemes and diesel for open-cycle gas turbines.

February 1, 2020

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Houses in the City of Joburg were spared from load-shedding by City Power on Thursday, 30 January. This, following Eskom’s announcement that it will be implementing stage 2 from 9 pm.

City Power said they have extra capacity to help mitigate against load-shedding and offset the 200MW that Eskom seeks to save. “Therefore the residents and businesses in Johannesburg are cushioned from the impact of load-shedding Stage 2 as announced. “

The power utility has announced again that there will be load-shedding from 9 am on 31 January. This will last until Monday (3 February) at 6 am. This is due to a shortage of generation capacity and depleted emergency resources, which were used extensively to supplement capacity over the past few days.

“Unplanned outages were at 12 722 MW as at 5.30am on 31 January. We are monitoring the system closely and we will continue to give periodic updates on the status of the power system as things may change at short notice,” said Eskom in a statement.

Eskom said that they want to assure the nation that critical maintenance is being done to units on planned outages as well as some of those on unplanned outages to ensure their timeous return to service. “We will use the weekend to replenish dam levels for pumped storage schemes and diesel for open-cycle gas turbines.”

“To assist us in reducing the stage of load-shedding, we appeal to customers to continue to use electricity sparingly.”

These are some of the tips Eskom has provided :

Use the cold water tap rather than the hot water tap as this uses the geyser every time.
Only fill kettles with as much water as you need
Set air-conditioners’ average temperature at 23ºC
Turn off computers, copiers, printers at the switch and avoid standby or sleep mode
Switch off the lights and air-conditioners when you leave the office
Switch off your geysers over peak periods
Set your swimming pool pump cycle to run twice a day, three hours at a time for optimal energy use

Customers are advised to check their load-shedding schedules on the Eskom or municipal websites depending on who supplies them.

City Power has, however, said that Joburg customers have nothing to worry about this morning as they will not be affected by this.