Stage 6 loadshedding will begin on Wednesday morning as a result of the ‘loss of additional generating units overnight,’ according to Eskom.
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Just before 7am, when stage 4 power cuts were anticipated to begin, the troubled power utility issued a brief statement in which it made the announcement.
‘Due to the loss of additional generating units overnight, the extensive use of open gas cycle turbines and the inability to replenish pumped storage dam levels, stage 4 loadshedding will be implemented at 7am this morning [Wednesday] until 2pm.
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‘Thereafter stage 6 will be implemented until 5am on Thursday. This pattern will be repeated daily until further notice. Eskom will publish an update as soon as significant changes occur.’
Since Monday’s freezing weather in many regions of the nation and the snowfall in some provinces, things have gotten worse for Eskom.
The utility began stage 4 power cuts on Monday afternoon due to increased demand brought on by the cold weather.
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The troubled organisation had initially declared that this week’s suspension of power outages, between 12am and 4pm, would continue due to ‘consistently available generation capacity.’
Optimistic electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa assured South Africans that it was ‘unlikely’ that the severity of loadshedding would be affected by the freezing temperatures.
At his Sunday briefing, he insisted that there was enough ‘leeway in the system to deal with peak weather patterns’ and provided an update on the Energy Action Plan’s implementation.
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Also read:
Stage 4 loadshedding implemented as Eskom struggles with high demand
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