Eskom downgraded load shedding from stage 2 to stage 1 on Saturday, but said the suspension of the rolling blackouts for Sunday and Tuesday will no longer be in place.
Stage 1 load shedding implemented
On Friday, the struggling power utility said load shedding would be suspended on Sunday between 5am and 4pm.
Stage 1 was then meant to be put in place until 4pm on Monday. Stage 2 was supposed to be introduced until 5am on Tuesday, when another suspension of load shedding was initially planned to be implemented.
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Eskom did not immediately give a reason for the change to its load shedding schedule.
“Eskom will provide an update as soon as any significant changes occur,” it said.
Improved performance of power stations
In rare good news from Eskom’s Megawatt Park on Thursday, the electricity supplier said it had seen significant improvement in the performance of its coal-fired power stations over the past week.
For the first time since 8 May 2022, six of Eskom’s coal-fired power stations managed to achieve an energy availably factor (EAF) of 70%.
“Three of these power stations, Camden, Duvha and Matla, have been on a sustained upward trend as a result of a reduction of plant breakdowns and the return to service of a number of units that were on unplanned breakdowns,” Eskom said.
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“Lethabo, Marimba and Medupi have been experiencing continued good performance and remain among Eskom’s three best performing stations.”
It added that the Lethabo Power Station continued to perform well despite experiencing a “wet coal incident” the previous week. This was caused by flooding after heavy rainfall.
