By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Eskom has announced that load shedding will be suspended at 11:00 on Monday, and will continue again at Stage 2 from 16:00 on Tuesday.
The group said it is able to pause load shedding earlier than expected thanks to the significantly lower than anticipated demand for electricity on Monday.
The lower demand on Monday could be due to various factors at play. The day marks the planned “national shutdown” led by the EFF, which has seen some businesses close for the day out of fear of being targetted for looting or disruption.
More likely, however, is that the dat sits between the weekend and the public holiday for Human Rights Day (21 March) – where many people have taken the day off to make it a long weekend.
Despite the pauses in load shedding this past weekend and over what many have taken as a long weekend, South Africa is still experiencing near-permanent load shedding – a state it has been in since September 2022.
Since October 2022, the country has had 141 consecutive days of blackouts to some degree – including every single day of 2023 so far.
Meanwhile President Cyril Ramaphosa is finalising the powers of the newly appointed Minister in the Presidency for Electricity, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa.
Addressing a media briefing on Sunday, Presidential Spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said that the newly appointed Minister has “hit the ground running.”
Ramaphosa announced Ramokgopa’s appointment during an address to the nation on 6 March 2023.
Responding to a question, Magwenya said since his appointment the Minister has been engaging various stakeholders.
“The powers of the Minister are being finalised, they are awaiting the President’s signature subject to any further engagements that the President may deem fit, “Magwenya said.
He added that the Minister will be visiting a number of power stations starting from tomorrow.
Still on the energy front, Magwenya said that the President had noted progress in such areas as the opening of a bid window for a 513 megawatts (MW) of battery storage capacity as part of the country’s response to the energy challenge.
Ramaphosa also welcomed a regulatory exemption granted to Eskom by the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Barbara Creecy, that will later this year allow Kusile Power Station to resume generation capacity of 2 100 megawatts (MW) which will reduce South Africa’s exposure to load-shedding by two levels.