Low risk of load-shedding today, 17 February

Eskom has said in a statement that the risk of load-shedding was low today, 17 February but the possibility of load-shedding during the week still remained.

Customers are reminded that due to the constrained and unreliable generation plant,  as well as any sudden changes in the demand profile, load-shedding may be implemented at short notice. Eskom will provide daily updates.

Unplanned outages or breakdowns were at 9869MW this morning [17 February] while planned maintenance is at 5486MW.

The power utility said, “Implementing load-shedding during the weekend has helped us to reduce the usage of the emergency diesel reserves and to replenish hydro-pumped storage schemes, which places us in a better position to meet demand this week.”

ALSO READ: Eskom to implement Stage 3 load-shedding until Monday

“Eskom also reminds South Africans  that there is a possibility of increased load-shedding over the next 18 months as we are conducting critical  maintenance to restore the ageing plant to good health.”

• Take a shower instead of filling up a bathtub with hot water
•  Only boil the amount you need, not the whole kettle
• Switch off your geyser over peak periods
• Always match the pot to the size of the stove plate
• Use the cold water tap rather than using the geyser every time
• Set your swimming pool pump cycle to run twice a day, three hours at a time
• At the end of the day, turn off computers, copiers, printers and fax machines at the switch.

Eskom appealed to customers to revisit their load-shedding schedules on the Eskom or local municipal websites, depending on their electricity supplier, to review amendments.