Endumeni experienced load shedding on Friday and more is on the cards – in fact, it could be a total blackout.  Hot weather has meant that airconditiong units are running flat out in offices and factories and with schools back next week, it could push the tottering utility over the edge.

At a high powered meeting yesterday (closed to the media) Eskom CEO Tshediso Matona  told stakeholders that ‘one unexpected event at any of its power stations could push the country to the total failure of the national electricity system that may take weeks to resolve.’

The two-hour high level meeting was attended by about 100 representatives fom business, several consultancy firms and organised agriculture, said Henk van de Graaf, assistant executive manager of agricultural body TLU SA, who was in attendance.

Matona repeated his earlier statements that Eskom is not in a crisis, because the organisation is functional but in the next breath he said we were facing a national emergency, according to Moneyweb’s Antoinette Slabbert.

Matona told the delegates that the diesel budget was depleted and Eskom was hoping for money from government “but they are not collecting [from] their municipal debtors,” said Van der Rheede.

He said it was the same government in charge of the non-paying municipalities and asked when this government was going to clamp down on them.

Van de Graaf said according to a calendar shown to delegates, power failures [are possible] from middle January, the whole of February, March and April.

Eskom’s interim profit of R9.3 billion will be wiped out in the second half and a mere R500 million profit is being projected for 2014/15.