Eskom confirmed an incident at the Tutuka Power Station near Standerton in which a cable was tampered with. According to the power utility’s statement, while the station was finalising preparations to return unit 5 to service, the damage to the cable delayed the unit’s return to service by three days, as it took some time to locate the fault. Once discovered, the cable was repaired in a short amount of time. Unit 5 then returned to service.

“On the same day a few hours later, a station control air pressure drop was discovered and the same unit 5 turbine systems that consume control air for operation, were de-energised. It was later discovered that the control air pipe supplying the turbine systems had been cut with a power tool and the entire bend was removed. It was welded back on and the system was charged with control air before being normalised,” read the statement.
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Eskom also indicated that the unit has returned to service, and they believe these were deliberate acts of sabotage by someone who had access to the site, when only employees have access and know the security features in the area quite well.

“Eskom has laid criminal charges with the police and its forensic team is assisting with the investigation. This is the fifth incident of sabotage since March 2021, and all of these have been reported. Eskom has employed measures to improve security at all its power stations in general and Tutuka Power Station in particular, where additional security personnel and smart technology have been introduced.

“While these measures have significantly improved security at Tutuka, including a reduction in cable theft incidents, it is to be noted that incidents such as this one serve as an opportunity to apply further improvements to securing the facility and the supply of electricity,” read the statement.

The power utility also said due to the continued shortage of generation capacity, stage 2 load-shedding will be implemented from 17:00 until 22:00 tonight. Load-shedding will be repeated at the same time on Saturday and Sunday.

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“Eskom will continue to closely monitor the system and adjust it, and communicate any changes as may be necessary. We currently have 3 405MW on planned maintenance, while another 15 534MW of capacity is unavailable due to breakdowns. We appeal to all South Africans to help limit the impact of load-shedding by reducing the usage of electricity and to switch off all non-essential items,” said the statement.

Eskom also reminds the public that load-shedding is implemented only as a last resort to protect the national grid. “We therefore urge all South Africans to continue using electricity sparingly, especially between 05:00 to 09:00 in the mornings and 16:00 to 22:00 in the evenings,” concluded Eskom.

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