After nearly ten days of loadshedding and countless possibilities of power interruptions, power provider Eskom as announced this morning (Monday) that the county’s electricity grid is still under strain.
Many residents experienced a weekend of power cuts, and Eskom has warned that the situation isn’t much better going into the week.
Eskom’s newly-appointed spokesperson Khulu Phasiwe told Jacaranda FM’s news team that the company is already running their emergency diesel generators to meet the demand this morning.
“The system will continue to be under severe pressure over the coming week, so the risk of load shedding remains high,” Eskom said.
There’s 50% probability of load shedding today. Any unexpected changes on an already constrained power system could result in load shedding.
— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) February 9, 2015
We ask our customers to continue using electricity sparingly to help reduce demand. Thank you.
— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) February 9, 2015
To put further strain on the grid, Koeberg power station’s Unit 1 will be shut down today.
“There is a shortage of generation capacity due to units that are currently out of service due to planned and unplanned maintenance. Koeberg power station’s Unit 1 will be shut down from tomorrow (Monday) for a scheduled refuelling, inspection and maintenance outage. The unit is expected to return back to service at the end of May,” Eskom commented.
[Source – Eskom]