Eskom announced in a statement on 8 March, that it will implement stage 1 load-shedding from Monday, 9 March at 9am until 11 pm.
The power utility said load-shedding may continue to be implemented until Thursday, 12 March due to the number of unplanned breakdowns, which will return during the course of the week.
Eskom said implementing load-shedding will put them in a better position to meet the rising demand during the week.
The system is currently constrained, unpredictable and vulnerable. Demand has also incrementally risen since January, putting pressure on the aging fleet. “We urge every South African to co-operate in managing electricity consumption with care to help us minimize load-shedding,” said Eskom.
Unplanned outages were at 11 700MW on Sunday (8 March) evening at 7.20pm while planned maintenance outages were at 4 963MW.
The power utility has provided the following tips to follow to reduce demand:
- Keep your morning shower short to lessen the load during the morning peak
- Take food out of the freezer for dinner and put it in the fridge to thaw. It’ll save you from using the microwave to defrost later.
- Set air-conditioners’ average temperature at 23ºC
- Switch off your geysers over peak periods
- Use the cold water tap rather than using the geyser every time
- Set your swimming pool pump cycle to run twice a day, three hours at a time
- At the end of the day, turn off computers, copiers, printers and fax machines at the witch.
