Load shedding downgraded to stage 1 as suspension for Sunday still in place

Eskom downgraded load shedding from stage 2 to stage 1 on Saturday, but caused confusion when it said the suspension of the rolling blackouts for Sunday and Tuesday would no longer be in place.

Stage 1 load shedding implemented

Later on Saturday, Eskom provided new information stating that load shedding will still be suspended on Sunday from 5am until 4pm.

“Eskom will provide an update on Sunday afternoon or as soon as any significant changes occur,” it said.

At this stage, there is no new update on the initial plan by Eskom to suspend load shedding on Tuesday as well.

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Improved performance of power stations

In rare good news from Eskom’s Megawatt Park on Thursday, the electricity supplier said it had seen significant improvement in the performance of its coal-fired power stations over the past week.

For the first time since 8 May 2022, six of Eskom’s coal-fired power stations managed to achieve an energy availably factor (EAF) of 70%. 

“Three of these power stations, Camden, Duvha and Matla, have been on a sustained upward trend as a result of a reduction of plant breakdowns and the return to service of a number of units that were on unplanned breakdowns,” Eskom said.

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“Lethabo, Marimba and Medupi have been experiencing continued good performance and remain among Eskom’s three best performing stations.”

It added that the Lethabo Power Station continued to perform well despite experiencing a “wet coal incident” the previous week. This was caused by flooding after heavy rainfall.  

NOTE: This article was updated to reflect the new information supplied by Eskom later on Saturday, 18 March 2023.