As Eskom relies on open-cycle gas turbines, which feed off diesel to meet energy demand, it expects to feel the impact of soaring global fuel prices.
Eskom's management team on Wednesday provided an update on the state of the power system. Since January 2022, South Africa has experienced 32 days of load shedding, outnumbering that over the same period last year.
While load shedding has persisted for 14 years, CEO André de Ruyter warned against accepting it as the "new normal". During the briefing, De Ruyter reiterated that to address load shedding, new generation capacity - between 4 000 MW and 6 000 MW - of power must be added to the grid.
Overall the power utility's Energy Availability Factor (EAF) - a measure of the power fed from Eskom's power stations to the rid - is at 62%, below a target of 74%. Acting head of generation Rhulani Mathebula,
who has taken over from Phillip Dukashe, explained that existing generation plants were not performing at full capacity. Eskom's planned maintenance programme was a key contributor to the low EAF, with unplanned breakdowns adding to the challenges.
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