Eskom said load shedding will be imposed at different stages throughout the week. Photo: iStock
Eskom has pushed load shedding to stage 4 from 4pm on Sunday until midnight.
The ailing parastatal said the rolling blackouts will thereafter be suspended until 4pm on Monday.
Eskom interim spokesperson Daphne Mokwena said the deliberate power cuts will then be imposed at different stages throughout the week.
“On Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday load shedding will be reduced to stage 3 from 4pm until midnight. This is due to a continued improvement in available generation capacity as a result of three units that were previously on outage being returned to service.”
Mokwena said Eskom will publish another update should any significant changes occur.
ALSO READ: ‘SA must settle for load shedding until end of year at least’ – Gordhan
She said breakdowns are currently at 16 115MW of generating capacity while the generating capacity out of service for planned maintenance is 3 766MW.
“Over the past 24 hours, a generating unit each at Arnot and Kendal power stations were returned to service. In the same period, a generation unit each at Kriel and Hendrina power stations were taken out of service due to breakdowns.
“The further delays in returning to service a generating unit at Grootvlei, Hendrina, Majuba and Tutuka power stations are contributing to the current capacity constraints. Eskom teams are working around the clock to return these generating units to service over the next few days,” Mokwena said.
Mokwena has urged Africans to use electricity sparingly and efficiently.
“This includes switching off geysers from 5pm to 9pm, as this is helping to alleviate the pressure on the power system and contributes to lower stages of load shedding,” she said.
Meanwhile, Eskom has accepted its fate after National Treasury denied it exemption from disclosing irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditures in its annual financial statements.
On Wednesday, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana issued a statement to say that he had declined the request.
“It is the view of the Minister that Eskom needs to do more operationally to reduce the scope of fraud and corruption before such exemption can be considered.
“As Eskom attempts to recover from the devastating impact of state capture, and take steps against past and current corruption, it needs to ensure that its anti-corruption strategy is credible and has the support of key stakeholders like investors, lenders, suppliers, customers, and the public,” the statement read.
In April, Godongwana granted the parastatal the request, but backtracked on the decision following public outcry.
ALSO READ: Eskom accepts fate after Treasury declines exemption on wasteful expenditure
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