Load shedding: Stage 3 in the morning and stage 4 in the afternoon from Tuesday

The return to service of five generating units has allowed Eskom to reduce load shedding from Tuesday morning.

Stage 5 will continue to be implemented until 5am, thereafter load shedding will be reduced to stage 3 from 4pm until 5am on Wednesday morning.

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The energy supplier said this course of stage 3 and 4 load shedding will continue until further notice.

The return to action of these generating units “will allow the emergency reserves to be adequately replenished by Tuesday morning”, Eskom said.

“Eskom will closely monitor the power system and communicate any changes to load shedding should it be required.

“Unplanned outages have reduced to 14 579MW of generating capacity, while the capacity out of service for planned maintenance is at 7 316MW.

“Eskom power station general managers and their teams continue to work diligently to ensure that additional generating units are brought back to service.

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“A total of 2,150MW of generating capacity is planned to be returned to service by Wednesday.”

Eskom’s evening peak demand on Monday is expected to be 26 902MW.

“We would like to appeal to members of the public to use electricity sparingly and efficiently, including switching off geysers and pool pumps from 17:00 to 21:00.

“This lowers demand and helps in alleviating the pressure on the power system, contributing to lower stages of loadshedding,” the utility concluded.

Down from stage 6

On Sunday, Eskom announced the country would move from stage 6 load shedding to stage 5 after two generating units returned to action.

South Africa had been battling stage 6 almost since the night President Cyril Ramaphosa said “the worst is behind us and the end of load shedding is finally within reach“ during his State of the Nation Address (Sona).

To this, Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa said the president was not lying in his assurances, adding that Eskom’s maintenance strategy at its power stations was to blame for the units failing.

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Additional reporting by: Kyle Zeeman and Getrude Makhafola