Stage 4 load-shedding to hit tonight
With the announcement that Stage 4 load-shedding will be implemented tonight, Eskom has also warned that load-shedding outside peak hours might be on the cards with diesel reserves running low.
Stage 4 load-shedding has just been announced, hours after Eskom COO Jan Oberholzer warned that load-shedding may increase.
He also warned that it might be implemented outside of the current evening peak hour times because of dwindling diesel reserves and an unreliable system.
Oberholzer was speaking during a media briefing earlier today.
He said that three units returned to service as expected today, but that the unreliability of the system may force in increase in the load-shedding stage at short notice.
Due to a further loss of generating capacity, loadshedding will be increased to Stage 4 from
17:00 – 22:00 tonight. pic.twitter.com/yEwGa2Rvch— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) May 16, 2022
Currently, Stage 4 is planned for tonight from 17:00 until 22:00. Stage 3 is planned tomorrow at the same time whereafter Stage 2 is planned for evening peak hours from Wednesday to Friday.
Oberholzer said that according to the current outlook, Eskom is going to have to rely heavily on emergency reserves to keep the lights on.
Offsite diesel stock levels currently sit at around 20m litres with the power utility burning 2m litres per day. So far 40m litres of diesel have been burnt in May.
He said they are currently in the process to get a diesel tanker, expected to dock on May 26, to arrive earlier.
“We may be forced to implement load-shedding during the day,” Oberholser warned.
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