UPDATE: Eskom implements stage 4 load shedding from Tuesday until 5am Friday

Eskom has announced that stage 4 load shedding will be implemented on Tuesday morning and will continue until 5 am on Friday morning.

Eskom said the jump from Stage 2 happened at 07:20 after Majuba Unit 5 and Tutuka Unit 4 tripped.

The power utility said it will continue to adjust the stage of load shedding depending on the level of breakdowns.

Spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha said load shedding is implemented only as a last resort to protect the national grid.

“A generation unit each at the Tutuka and Majuba power stations tripped this morning, adding to the
failures of a unit each that had tripped at Tutuka, Camden, Matla and two units at Majuba yesterday.
Since Monday a unit each at Hendrina, Medupi, Tutuka, Arnot and two at Camden power stations have
been returned to service.”

The ‘dark lords’ of Megawatt Park have apologised for the implementation of load shedding and urged South Africans to use electricity sparingly.

“The power system remains unpredictable, and Eskom will continue to closely monitor the power system and promptly inform the public should there be any significant developments.”

Eskom on Sunday implemented stage 2 load shedding from 4pm until 5am on Wednesday due to additional generation unit losses and delayed return to service of generators.

Eskom has constantly been rolling over maintenance that it has scheduled as it battles to keep generation from the coal fleet at adequate levels.

This deferral of maintenance has a knock-on effect: the coal plants become more unreliable, forcing it to run working units harder which, in turn, affects their reliability.

Over the past week, Eskom has used an enormous amount of diesel as well as emergency measures such as interruptible load supply and virtual power supply (where it cuts power to large customers, primarily the aluminium smelters) just to keep the lights on. And that was in addition to load shedding from Monday evening until Friday at 05:00.

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