The frustration of loadshedding has reared on for four days, casting a dark shade over the weekend.
Loadshedding expected to continue from Monday 15 March 2021
Since Wednesday, Eskom has been loadshedding at stage 2. On Friday, the power utility informed the public that rotational power cuts would resume into the weekend, with “a high probability that loadshedding may continue into the coming week.”
The electricity provider explained in its statement that much of their power generation repair work was hampered by breakdowns at Kriel, Medupi and Kendal power stations.
This setback places Eskom in a precarious situation, considering that already, big power contributors Kusile, Duvha and Tutuka were under maintenance for two days when Friday’s breakdowns were reported.
“Emerging risks at various other power stations have also contributed to the constraints,” Eskom said.
How much power does Eskom have available?
While technicians have been working around the clock to restore a sustained feed into the power grid, the state of South Africa’s energy infrastructure is leaves much to be desired.
Eskom revealed that it is currently holding 7 071MW on planned maintenance, while 11 780MW is unavailable due to supply constraints experienced at its power stations.
“Eskom is working hard to return the units back to service and should the previously stated risks materialise and units not return as expected, there is a high probability that loadshedding may continue into the coming week,” the utility added.
There is a slight chance that the energy provider may call off power cuts, with the resumption of output from a couple of the generation units. However, the worst-case scenario is that loadshedding may roll on until Saturday 20 March 2021.
Remember, stage 2 loadshedding doubles the frequency of stage 1. This means, you will be scheduled for loadshedding six times over a four-day period for two hours at a time, or six times over an eight-day period for four hours at a time.