Eskom Slightly Relieves Load-Shedding Schedule Over The Weekend Due To Increased Generation Availability

South Africa's main power supplier, Eskom, has announced a suspension of its load-shedding plan over the weekend. The policy will be put on hold between 5am and 4pm on Saturday and Sunday, courtesy of an improved generation availability and a predicted decline in demand over the weekend.

However, Eskom highlighted that stage 2 load-shedding will still be implemented during the hours of 4pm and 5am on both Saturday and Sunday, meaning that the relief from load shedding will only be partial.

Currently, breakdowns equate to 14,266MW of generating capacity, while the facility out of service for planned maintenance totals 5,388MW.

Over the last day, power stations at Arnot, Duvha, Ingula, and Vanderkloof have each had to take one generating unit offline for repairs, portraying some reliability issues which still exist within the system. On a positive note, one unit at Hendrina Power Station has been returned to service, a small yet noteworthy step towards improved power supply.

The decision to reduce load-shedding hours this weekend indicates a recognition of weekend demands and the current improvement in generation output. However, Eskom's notice also serves as a reminder that the country's power crisis is still far from over.