https://sputnikglobe.com/20221121/measures-under-way-to-end-power-cuts-claims-south-african-official--1104506782.html
Measures ‘Under Way’ to End Power Cuts, Claims South African Official
Measures ‘Under Way’ to End Power Cuts, Claims South African Official
Sputnik International
This article is dedicated to energy crisis in South Africa, and specific measures of the government to tackle it.
2022-11-21T16:13+0000
2022-11-21T16:13+0000
2022-11-23T11:38+0000
africa
south africa
cyril ramaphosa
energy crisis
electricity
electricity supply
electricity blackout
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South Africa’s government is working on a way to end power outages, President Cyril Ramaphosa's spokesperson Vincent Magwenya has argued during a press briefing on Sunday. Following state-owned power utility Eskom announcing that stage 5 load shedding, or energy rationing, would probably be implemented next week, Magwenya expressed the government's position.Magwenya noted that there have been approximately 162 days with power cuts this year, making it the worst year in terms of load shedding. He stated that households and businesses across the country have been strongly affected by intermittent energy supply, and the prospect of more blackouts "is deeply disheartening".However, he alleged that the government is stepping up its activities to solve the problem of energy shortages in the country. Earlier this year, Ramaphosa announced measures to purportedly prevent load shedding, and subsequently tackle theenergy crisis. These measures included improving the performance of the company’s power stations and adding new generation capacity to the grid as soon as possible.Their implementation has been monitored by the National Energy Crisis Committee over the past three months. Moreover, the police established a special unit to deal with suspected sabotage, theft and corruption at Eskom, and Magwenya said that many cases have already gone to court.Magwenya mentioned that it would take time for the company to return generation units at Kusile and other power stations to service, and for new sources of capacity to come online.The spokesman added that Eskom has set up a committee to enhance plant performance.The continent's most-industrialized country has been facing record power cuts this year, mostly due to breakdowns at Eskom’s aging coal-fired plants which make up the backbone of South Africa's generation capacity. The company had to turn to turbines that run on diesel to mitigate energy shortage. On Sunday, Eskom stated that it doesn't have enough cash to buy more diesel and will not be able to order more until April 2023. This may result in unprecedented levels of electricity shortages known as load shedding in the country. The current scheduled energy cuts reach stage 4, the equivalent of removing 4,000 megawatts from the grid. According to the recent statements of the company, changes in the stages of load shedding will be more erratic.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20220919/south-africas-ramaphosa-to-return-home-instead-of-attend-unga-due-to-electrical-crisis-1100984050.html
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south africa, power outages, energy crisis, eskom, electricity, load shedding
south africa, power outages, energy crisis, eskom, electricity, load shedding
Measures ‘Under Way’ to End Power Cuts, Claims South African Official
16:13 GMT 21.11.2022 (Updated: 11:38 GMT 23.11.2022) South Africa is currently experiencing a severe energy crisis as the utility firm Eskom implements nationwide power cuts to reduce pressure on the grid following the breakdown of its old coal-powered plants. Frequent blackouts negatively impact economic activity.
South Africa’s government is working on a way to end power outages, President Cyril Ramaphosa's spokesperson Vincent Magwenya has argued during a press briefing on Sunday.
Following state-owned power utility Eskom announcing that stage 5 load shedding, or energy rationing, would probably be implemented next week, Magwenya expressed the government's position.
"I think the president has been quite open about accepting the devastating nature of load shedding, not only to households but to businesses, to the economy and to jobs," he said, as cited by local media.
Magwenya noted that there have been approximately 162 days with power cuts this year, making it the worst year in terms of load shedding. He stated that households and businesses across the country have been strongly affected by intermittent energy supply, and the prospect of more blackouts "is deeply disheartening".
However, he alleged that the government is stepping up its activities to solve the problem of energy shortages in the country.
It is difficult at times to remain optimistic when the results of our actions are not felt immediately. Yet, at the same time, we must say that there are a range of initiatives that are already underway that will make load shedding a thing of the past," he said.
Earlier this year, Ramaphosa announced measures to purportedly prevent load shedding, and subsequently tackle theenergy crisis. These measures included improving the performance of the company’s power stations and adding new generation capacity to the grid as soon as possible.
19 September 2022, 22:55 GMT
Their implementation has been monitored by the National Energy Crisis Committee over the past three months. Moreover, the police
established a special unit to deal with suspected sabotage, theft and corruption at Eskom, and Magwenya said that many cases have already gone to court.
"Just this week, a contractor working at the Camden power station was arrested for an incident of sabotage aimed at securing more maintenance and repair jobs for his company," he explained.
Magwenya mentioned that it would take time for the company to return generation units at Kusile and other power stations to service, and for new sources of capacity to come online.
The spokesman added that Eskom has set up a committee to enhance plant performance.
"These and other measures will stabilise the performance of the existing fleet and lead to an improvement of the reliability for the coming months," he said.
The continent's most-industrialized country has been facing record power cuts this year, mostly due to breakdowns at Eskom’s aging coal-fired plants which make up the backbone of South Africa's generation capacity. The company had
to turn to turbines that run on diesel to mitigate energy shortage.
On Sunday, Eskom
stated that it doesn't have enough cash to buy more diesel and will not be able to order more until April 2023. This may result in unprecedented levels of electricity shortages known as load shedding in the country. The current scheduled energy cuts reach stage 4, the equivalent of removing 4,000 megawatts from the grid. According to the recent
statements of the company, changes in the stages of load shedding will be more erratic.
