Ongoing maintenance problems at Eskom power plants caused nationwide load shedding last week.
Amajuba District was also affected, with Ladysmith, Dundee and Volksrust being first in line. Newcastle however, was unaffected.
According to the Eskom web site, www.loadshedding.eskom.co.za, load shedding has now come to an end. Sources within Eskom confirmed that the heavy rainfall had been a large contributing factor to many homes and businesses in the Amajuba District being left without electricity.
Mayor of Newcastle, Afzul Rehman, also confirmed that any electricity problems within Newcastle had not been due to Eskom load shedding, but rather as a result of the heavy rainfall.
“We are keeping our fingers crossed, but so far it does not look like Newcastle will be affected,” said Cllr Rehman. “Eskom contacts us and tells us how much electricity usage we must cut. So far, we have been able to manage by using our own methods.”
The Newcastle Ratepayers’ Association sent a letter to the editor, titled ‘Interesting facts on Load Shedding in Newcastle’, whereby the association brought the following to light:
During 1981 and 1982, the Borough Electrical Engineer, Paul van Niekerk, through his foresight to reduce electricity usage during peak hours, convinced Council to introduce ripple relays to switch off geysers during peak times.
Six years ago, the Newcastle Municipality upgraded the system and installed a further 1 800 units.This foresight resulted in savings on Council bills, and has been instrumental in excluding Newcastle from load shedding.
Further sources, who wished to remain anonymous, also confirmed that some industrial plants, that account for almost two thirds of the town electricity usage, could cut electricity to non vital sections during times that load shedding was imminent, thus preventing prolonged power outages to residential areas.
Eskom announced on Monday morning that no more load shedding would be necessary in the near future, as the situation caused by the heavy rainfall had been brought under control.
