Latest news with #EskomGroup
The South African
09-05-2025
- Business
- The South African
14-hour power outage to affect parts of Gauteng on Tuesday
Residents of Dobsonville Extension 3 in Soweto will experience a planned power outage on Tuesday, 13 May, from 9:00 to 23:00. Eskom confirmed the outage will allow for 'essential maintenance on our distribution power lines,' as the utility continues efforts to stabilise its infrastructure. Eskom advised residents to prioritise safety during the 14-hour power outage. 'In the interest of safety, customers are advised to treat all electrical appliances as live at all times during the power supply outage,' the power utility said in a statement. Additionally, it also thanked residents for their cooperation and apologised for the inconvenience. The planned maintenance may be delayed if unforeseen challenges arise. At a media briefing in Johannesburg, Eskom Group Chief Executive Dan Marokane outlined the company's outlook for winter 2024/2025. Marokane revealed optimism for reduced load shedding compared to previous years. He attributed the improved forecast to better operational performance and a drop in unplanned outages. 'If outages increase to 15GW, load shedding would be limited to a maximum of 21 days out of 153 days at stage 2 – an improvement over the prior winter's worst-case prediction of stage 5 load shedding,' Marokane stated. Furthermore, this winter, Eskom expects unplanned outages to range between 13 and 15GW, down from last year's 14–17GW forecast. Last winter saw no load shedding, with average unplanned outages sitting at 12.3GW — well below projections. Boosted Capacity and Maintenance Synergy Eskom has indicated that additional generating capacity is expected to come online. That will help cushion against possible spikes in demand. The utility's confidence in maintaining power supply without resorting to severe load shedding rests on keeping unplanned outages under the critical 13GW threshold. In addition, Marokane explained that the 3.1GW drop in unplanned outages has contributed significantly to the more favourable outlook. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
IOL News
05-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Eskom's winter 2025 plan: Stable grid, fewer outages, and no stage 5 blackouts in sight
Eskom has pledged to keep the country warn this winter, warned that should demand increase, Stage 1 and 2 rolling blackouts may still be implemented. Image: Itumeleng English / Independent Newspapers Power utility Eskom has vowed to keep the country warm this winter, saying the national electricity grid is stable, maintenance is progressing, and emergency reserves are in place. However, should demand increase, Stage 1 and 2 rolling blackouts may still be implemented. 'For winter 2025, loadshedding is not expected if unplanned outages remain below 13GW. If outages increase to 15GW, loadshedding would be limited to a maximum of 21 days out of 153 days at Stage 2, an improvement over the prior winter's worst-case prediction of Stage 5 loadshedding,' said Eskom Group Chief Executive Dan Marokane during a media briefing on Monday. Marokane said the improved winter outlook is due to a 3.1GW decrease in unplanned outages compared to the previous year. 'As a result, the forecast range has been lowered to 13–15GW, down from 14–17GW in winter 2024,' he said. 'Last winter had no loadshedding, with average unplanned outages at 12.3GW, significantly below the winter 2024 base-case projection of 14GW.' Marokane said this year's winter outlook is based on an improvement in operational performance and overall efficiency. 'Loadshedding was lower in Eskom's last financial year (FY 2025) than in the previous two years. In FY 2025 we delivered power 96% of the time, in the previous year the figure was just 9.9%,' he said. 'Our diesel open-cycle gas turbines were utilised approximately 50% less in FY 2025 compared to the two previous financial years, saving around R16 billion,' Marokane added. 'Against this progress, we have seen some setbacks in operational excellence, as evidenced by the recent loadshedding requirements between January to April 2025,' he added. 'A targeted plan has been put in place to reinforce operational discipline and accelerate recovery initiatives to address the root causes related to the recent loadshedding events.' Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. 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Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ Marokane said the winter outlook is based on a number of key performance indicators, including a 3.1GW year-on-year decrease in unplanned outages, which has enhanced available generation capacity. Between May 2023 (18GW) and April 2025 (13.5GW), there was a significant 4.5GW reduction, reflecting improved plant performance. He said the summer average of 12.5GW in unplanned outages was better than the forecasted base case of 13GW, despite some units being reclassified from planned to unplanned outages due to overruns in scheduled maintenance. 'Planned maintenance for FY 2025 reached 12.8%, up from 12% in the previous year, marking a 0.8% increase. Between September and March, maintenance activity averaged 14.5%, compared to 14.07% during the same period the previous year and 11.8% in FY 2023, an increase of 2.7% compared to FY 2023.' 'This forward-looking approach contributes to enhanced winter preparedness and ensures compliance with environmental and regulatory requirements.' He said plant availability improved to 61% in FY 2024 and 2025, up from 54.6% the previous year, an approximately 6.5% year-on-year improvement. Eskom projects a notable increase in the Energy Availability Factor (EAF) as it completes the outstanding actions in its recovery plan. 'Diesel consumption dropped by approximately 50%, resulting in cost savings of approximately R16.51 billion year-on-year, reflecting a reduced reliance on emergency generation.' Marokane added: 'Sales volumes grew by approximately 3.6% year-on-year, driven by improved generation capacity, higher exports and reduced reliance on diesel'. He confirmed that Kusile Units 2 and 3 have been successfully reconnected to the main stacks and are now operating with the flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) system. "Unit 1 is currently undergoing a scheduled outage and is expected to return to service in June, also connected to the main stack. This follows authorisation from the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), which had previously permitted the temporary operation of the three units without the FGD system, under strict environmental conditions, until March 31, 2025, following the 2022 structural failure of the west stack.' He said a total of 3.470GW wind capacity was made available through curtailment in the Eastern and Western Cape. 'In line with our goal to modernise the power system, Eskom has installed 880,000 smart meters to date.' Among other benefits, this technology supports effective demand control through load limiting and enables eligible customers to return surplus clean energy to the grid, helping to reduce strain on the system during peak times. 'Continued investment in building 2,500MW capacity and securing future energy supply through key milestones, Koeberg Unit 2 successfully returned more than 900MW to service in December 2024 following the completion of the Long-Term Operation project,' Marokane said. He said Kusile Unit 6 was synchronised to the grid on March 23, 2025, contributing 800MW and is scheduled to be in commercial operation by September 2025.
The Citizen
25-04-2025
- Business
- The Citizen
R100 billion debt: only 10 municipalities honouring their accounts
Only 10 municipalities are paying their accounts. There appears to be no solution in sight as municipalities' debt to Eskom continues to soar with each financial year. Eskom Group chief executive Dan Marokane briefed the parliamentary portfolio committee on electricity and energy on Friday on the power utility's affairs. The briefing came after Eskom implemented load shedding from Thursday afternoon to Friday midnight. ALSO READ: Power crisis: Is Eskom's respite just the calm before the storm? 'Despite significant progress in our generation recovery efforts, higher than expected electricity demand, the loss of generation units and extensive planned maintenance have placed strain on the system,' Eskom said on Thursday. Marokane told the committee that despite these hiccups, Eskom is in a much better place than it was two years ago. In 2023, South Africans experienced 280 days of load shedding, increasing to 329 days in 2024. In the past financial year ending March 2025, Eskom recorded just 13 days of load shedding. Eskom met the electricity demand 96% of the time in the past financial year. ALSO READ: How Eskom and National Treasury saved taxpayers more than R20bn The power utility also recorded a R16.93 billion year-on-year reduction in diesel spend, a 45% reduction in diesel costs compared to the previous financial year. 'This means that Eskom, through improving its generation performance, was able to provide electricity to South Africa without an overreliance on diesel. This is a clear sign of improved operational performance,' Marokane said. 'Plan yielding results' Marokane further slammed narratives that seem to undermine Eskom's work. He said the real numbers reflected an improvement in the power utility's overall functioning despite comments from critics. 'It's important that we state this very explicitly because very often, there are narratives that are being driven that seek to undermine the progress that the 41 000 employees of Eskom are making and those who are working in collaboration with us,' Marokane said . 'When we do so, we undermine the confidence of the work that we do and we undermine ourselves as a country. And yet, all this is done when the data is publicly available. This is the data and there is no other story to tell from this data as it is.' ALSO READ: Is Eskom winning the fight against corruption and theft? Marokane said that although there was progress, Eskom was not out of the woods yet concerning load shedding. 'The fact remains that the implementation of the generation recovery plan is yielding results. We are not yet out of the woods. We are working hard to make some corrections and adaptations to our plans to ensure we get to a place where load shedding is behind us.' Eskom debt However, despite progress, Eskom has struggled to collect payments from municipalities. While some municipalities have acknowledged their debt to Eskom, others have still not honoured payment agreements. In March 2023, the National Treasury launched the Eskom municipal debt relief programme which aims to provide financial relief to municipalities struggling to pay their debts. ALSO READ: We just came out of emergency load shedding, but Eskom has high hopes for winter At the time, 71 municipalities were targeted for the programme. However, by March 2024, only 23 municipalities were honouring their accounts. By November 2024, only 10 municipalities were honouring current accounts. The Eskom debt has now soared to R100 billion, with the utility scrambling for solutions to the challenge.
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Eskom integrates Kusile's final unit, aiming for 2.5GW by 2025
Eskom has added the final 800MW unit of Kusile power station, Unit 6, to South Africa's national grid. The development represents a milestone in Eskom's strategy to add 2.5GW of new capacity by March 2025. Up to September 2025, Unit 6 will undergo testing and optimisation before being officially added to Eskom's generation fleet. Kusile's sister project, Medupi, is set to return 800MW from Unit 4 by April 2025 after an extended outage due to a generator stator failure. Once Kusile Unit 6 reaches commercial operation, both newbuild power station projects will be in commercial operation. Eskom Group CEO Dan Marokane stated: 'Kusile Unit 6's addition is proof that we are making continued progress in stabilising and strengthening South Africa's electricity supply. Meeting the targets we set in the Generation Recovery Plan and our strategic roadmap underscores our determination to deliver new capacity, enhance generation performance, support economic growth and ultimately deliver a more sustainable energy future. 'We re-iterate our commitment to ensuring that South Africa is in no way returning to the levels of load-shedding that we experienced in 2023. Our focus remains on delivering a more reliable, resilient and sustainable power system for the country.' The Kusile power station will contribute 4.8GW when all units are in operation, making it South Africa's largest infrastructure project. The power plant is also the first in the country to implement wet flue gas desulphurisation technology to meet air quality standards. Eskom Group executive for generation Bheki Nxumalo stated: 'Eskom is at a critical point returning megawatts to the grid as we are currently in a constrained state. This milestone is a testament to the unwavering dedication and resilience of Eskom's employees and contractors. Their commitment has driven us forward despite numerous challenges. 'As we celebrate this progress, our focus is now on ensuring that Unit 6 achieves commercial operation in the second half of 2025, further strengthening South Africa's energy security.' Eskom remains committed to its Generation Operational Recovery Plan, focusing on governance and sustainability to ensure energy security for South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa. In January 2025, Eskom connected the 930MW Unit 2 of the Koeberg nuclear power station to the national grid, advancing the plan. This connection follows a long-term operation programme to extend the unit's life by 20 years, following similar upgrades to Unit 1. "Eskom integrates Kusile's final unit, aiming for 2.5GW by 2025" was originally created and published by Power Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
