Eskom promises no load-shedding over the long weekend

Eskom says it has returned 3,320MW of generation capacity to service over the past 24 hours and is confident it has enough supply to meet demand over the long weekend.

The power utility has also set 5 May 2025 as its winter outlook briefing date. It previously planned to host the briefing before the end of April 2025.

“In the past 24 hours, a total of 3,320MW of generation capacity has been restored, ensuring a stable power system with enough supply to meet the long weekend’s demand,” Eskom said.

“Emergency reserves are adequate and will be strategically utilised when necessary to manage peak demand.”

It added that 4,058MW will be returned to service before the evening peak on Tuesday, 29 April, to further stabilise the grid.

Eskom noted that the open-cycle gas turbine (OCGT) load factor increased to 15.28% in the past week, up from 9.78% recorded in the week from 11 to 17 April 2025.

The power utility has spent approximately R2.19 billion on diesel for its OCGTs since 1 April, generating 372.05GWh of capacity.

“This is higher than the 149.9GWh generated during the same period last year,” it added.

The power utility said it would continue with planned maintenance to prepare for the increased winter demand, meet regulatory requirements, and ensure environmental compliance.

“For the year-to-date, 7,164MW of generating capacity has been under planned maintenance, on average,” it said.

“This equates to 15.32% of generation capacity, marking a 3.8% increase compared to the same period last year.”

The update comes after Eskom implemented stage 2 load-shedding between 16:00 and midnight on Thursday, 24 April.

It initially planned to continue stage 2 load-shedding until 05:00 on Friday, 25 April, but managed to suspend the power cuts five hours early.

It said this was made possible as a result of the recovery of around 2,015MW of generating capacity, a decline in demand, and sufficient emergency reserves.

Promises to end load-shedding

Eskom last implemented overnight load-shedding on 19–20 March after five generating units went offline before and during the evening peak.

The utility has experienced a sudden downturn in reliability this year after providing South Africa an over 300-day reprieve from rotational power cuts since April 2024.

Eskom announced the return of stage 3 load-shedding on 31 January 2025, but assured it was a temporary setback.

Eskom board chair Mteto Nyati went on national TV and said he was confident that Eskom would not have to implement load-shedding again from the end of March.

“We had this plan. This was a two-year plan which was adopted in March 2023. We have been implementing that plan,” Nyati said in February.

“We are now like two or three months away from the end of those two years. End of March 2025, that’s when the plan should have been executed,” he said.

“At the end of that plan is when we can come back, the Minister (Kgosientsho Ramokgopa), myself, and the CEO (Dan Marokane), and communicate to South Africa that there’s not going to be load-shedding.”

He explained that to declare the end of load-shedding, Eskom had to complete specific projects between the beginning of February and the end of March.

These included synchronising Kusile power station’s Unit 6 to the grid and bringing Medupi Unit 4 back online.

Eskom announced on 23 March that Kusile Unit 6 was brought online. However, it is only scheduled to achieve full commercial operation in the second half of the year.

Medupi Unit 4’s return to service has also been pushed back to between the end of April and early May 2025.

However, this delay and the additional time needed to fully operationalise Kusile Unit 6 do not explain why Eskom’s energy availability factor (EAF) has stubbornly remained below 60%.

MyBroadband asked Eskom and Nyati why he has not called the press conference he promised in February to declare the end of load-shedding.

Nyati forwarded the query to Eskom, and Eskom declined to comment, saying it would provide feedback at a future media briefing.

“We believe it would be prudent for Eskom to include updates on the progress of its EAF and overall Generation Operational Recovery Plan in its forthcoming media briefing on its Power System and Winter Outlook,” an Eskom spokesperson said.

That briefing is now scheduled for 5 May.