201 days without load shedding: ‘No lies, we’re not out of the woods yet’ – Ramokgopa [VIDEO]

As the country marks over 200 days without load shedding, Minister of Energy and Electricity Kgosientsho Ramokgopa said the country is not out of the woods yet.

Ramokgopa shed the light at the end of the tunnel on Eskom’s implementation of the Energy Action Plan (EAP) as the parastatal marked 200 days of suspended load shedding in South Africa.

The last time South Africa experienced load shedding was in March 2024.

Watch: Kgosientsho Ramokgopa on the impact of no load shedding

[WATCH] Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa says research indicates that with load shedding kept at bay and sustained power supply, "the South African economy could grow by 3.5% in the next 18 to 24 months." #Newzroom405 pic.twitter.com/ODWtaHPmN5

— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) October 14, 2024

‘Not out of the woods’

Ramokgopa said Eskom’s Generation Operational Recovery Plan has not only reduced unplanned outages by 8.6% and improved the Energy Availability Factor (EAF) by 7.7%, enhancing the reliability of the generation fleet, but it has also positively impacted the economic outlook and Eskom’s profitability.

“When we come to a period in our life here in South Africa, and I suspect it will be very soon, where we stop celebrating and counting the number of no load shedding days, then that will on its own represent a major victory for us.

“The fact that we are celebrating this means that we are still in an awkward place, so we are not necessarily out of the woods yet, so we will not tell any lies,” Ramokgopa said.

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No load shedding

Ramokgopa said Eskom still has an ambition of achieving a 70% EAF by 2025.

“The team is on course to do exactly that.  Today, we use the occasion of 200 days plus one to give an update on generation performance. The health and performance of the grid have made it possible for me to give you an update over a period of time.

“We must come to a stage where we normalise the absence of no load shedding and in fact, we get to a situation where we’ll say load shedding is behind us. I want to say that at the right time, the Eskom board led by the CEO, they’ll advise the ministry at which point we call it. But, where we are, when I say call it, to say to the country that we are out of the woods,” Ramokgopa said

‘Happiness index’

Ramokgopa says research indicates that with load shedding kept at bay and sustained power supply, “the South African economy could grow by 3.5% in the next 18 to 24 months.”

He said the suspended load shedding has also had a positive impact on the “happiness index”.

“The kind of improvement that we are seeing on the generation side is having a positive impact on the economy. It’s also having a positive impact on what I call the happiness index. If we were to compute what I call the happiness index, I think people are in a better space now, you wake up with the lights on.”

Ramokgopa said Eskom intends to sustain the suspension of load shedding, adding that the utility is also going to be a “big player in new generation, especially on renewables.”

Ramokgopa praised the Eskom board for its pivotal role in tackling the energy crisis. “The milestone marks a significant step forward in improving South Africa’s energy stability,” he said.

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