Scores of South African families have found themselves left in the dark, as Eskom implements Stage 4 load shedding.
While Newcastillians have a few days grace, with our electricity running rather smoothly, it seems this has come to an end with Eskom announcing that we can expect Load 4 load shedding until further notice.
According to a statement released by the power utility earlier today, March 11, the cause of the load shedding is due to a shortage of generation capacity, resulting from an unplanned breakdown.
“We expect the load shedding, at various stages, may continue until the weekend. The pump fault on Koeberg Unit 1 is being fixed, and it is envisaged that the unit will be back in service at the weekend. In the meantime, we continue utilising emergency generation reserves, including diesel, to supplement supply,” Eskom’s statement states.
Furthermore, Eskom adds as the ageing fleet is currently constrained, unpredictable and vulnerable, the power utility advises South Africans that the stage of load shedding may change at short notice, should there be any unexpected change in the generation system performance.
Koeberg supplies around 1 860 MW to the national grid. Around 930 MW of power was lost with the disconnection of Unit 1.
Newcastillians are encouraged to remain patient while Eskom works on resolving the issue.
