From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, this is the Real Economy Report.
Sashnee Moodley:
Eskom’s newest coal-fired power stations, Limpopo-based Medupi and Mpumalanga-based Kusile have suffered setbacks since their commissioning, some of which are yet to be finalised. Because Eskom ordered boilers of such a high capacity – at about 800 MW a unit – this meant that the power utility suffered from teething problems associated with plant and equipment deployed in few other places in the world. This meant Eskom had to work with the boiler manufacturers to understand the issues and work together to solve them.
Eskom projects general manager Zandi Shange speaks to Engineering News’ Donna Slater about fixing the major defects and about where the utility currently stands in terms of operational capacity.
Eskom projects GM Zandi Shange:
Sashnee Moodley:
By addressing and solving the major boiler defects, Eskom is improving the energy availability factor for both Medupi and Kusile. This could be good news in terms of having to load shed less. Shange explains.
Eskom projects GM Zandi Shange:
Sashnee Moodley:
That’s Creamer Media’s Real Economy Report. Join us again next week for more news and insight into South Africa’s real economy. Don’t forget to listen to the audio version of our Engineering News daily email newsletter.