Load-shedding is back — here is the timetable

Eskom has announced that it will implement stage 2 load-shedding from 16:00 on Sunday, 29 October 2023, until 16:00 on Monday, 30 October.

The power utility attributed the need to restart rotational power cuts to low emergency generation reserves.

“After nine days of good generation performance and no load-shedding, it is necessary to replenish emergency reserves ahead of the anticipated cold weather that will increase the demand for electricity over the next few days,” said Eskom.

“Stage 2 load-shedding will be implemented from 16:00 today until 16:00 on Monday. Thereafter, stage 3 load-shedding will be implemented from 16:00 until 05:00 on Tuesday, followed by stage 2 load-shedding until 16:00.”

This pattern will repeat daily until further notice. The power utility said it would communicate any changes if necessary.

Eskom currently has 5,950MW of generation capacity offline for planned maintenance, with a further 16,150MW unavailable due to breakdowns.

“Over the past 24 hours, a generation unit each at Duvha, Grootvlei, Kusile and Matimba power stations was taken offline for repairs. In the same period, a generation unit at Kriel Power Station was returned to service,” it said.

“Eskom teams are working tirelessly to ensure that additional generating units are returned to service as soon as possible.”

The power utility anticipates a peak demand of 27,557MW on Monday evening, while its load forecast for the peak is 24,824MW.

The Eskom load-shedding schedule from Sunday, 29 October 2023, until further notice is provided in the list below.

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