No load-shedding expected on Monday as outlook is positive, says Eskom

24th February 2020 By: African News Agency

 No load-shedding expected on Monday as outlook is positive, says Eskom

Photo by: Bloomberg

No load-shedding is expected on Monday, as the power generation outlook is positive, with four generation units returning to service, Eskom said.

"With the planned return of four generation units, as well as adequate emergency reserves, Eskom does not expect to implement rotational load-shedding [on Monday]," the State-owned power utility said in a statement.

The generation system held up sufficiently during the weekend, helping Eskom to avoid implementing load-shedding on Sunday. However, the generation plant remained unreliable and unpredictable, and the possibility remained that load-shedding could be implemented at short notice, should there be major changes in the performance of the generation system.

Unplanned outages or breakdowns had increased to 11 205 MW as at 3.40pm on Sunday afternoon, while planned maintenance was 6077 MW. Four generation units, at Kriel, Medupi, Majuba, and Tutuka power stations, were expected to return to service on Monday. This would further increase generation capacity and help to avoid load-shedding, Eskom said.