Load-shedding for Monday night, with more bad news for the week ahead
Eskom will resume load-shedding on Monday night due to further breakdowns and delays in returning generating units to service.
Staff Writer 
Stage 1 load-shedding will be implemented from 17:00 until 22:00 this evening.
This comes after the loss of two generation units at Kusile, and one each at Kendal and Tutuka power stations.
The utility said supply constraints have been exacerbated by delays in returning a unit each at Kusile, Duvha, and Matla power stations to operation.
“Breakdowns currently total 15,570MW of capacity, while planned maintenance is 1,273MW of capacity,” Eskom stated.
The utility warned that the likelihood of load-shedding was high for the rest of the week, as the power system remains constrained and vulnerable.
“Eskom will communicate promptly should there be any changes,” it stated.
It added these capacity constraints will continue for the foreseeable future and urged South Africans to reduce their use of electricity, particularly between 17:00 and 22:00, when winter demand is at its highest.
According to Sunday newspaper Rapport, South Africans should be prepared for higher stages of load-shedding later this month.
In order to conduct planned maintenance, the utility is planning to take offline six generating units at its ageing coal power plants.
Energy expert Chris Yelland warned these outages – together with unexpected breakdowns – could require stage 4 or stage 5 load-shedding to be implemented.
During stage 4 load-shedding, South Africans can expect double the frequency of stage 2 load-shedding, with two hours of load-shedding 12 times over a four day period.
Stage 5 load-shedding will effectively see households hit with 7.5 hours of load-shedding per day.
