Eskom to suspend loadshedding at 9pm on Friday

Eskom announced on Friday that loadshedding will be suspended from 9pm tonight after seven of its generation units returned to service.

The power utility said a unit each at Kendal, Camden and Grootvlei power stations and two units each at Majuba and Matimba power stations returned to service.

“Total breakdowns currently amount to 14 960MW while planned maintenance is 3 345MW of capacity,” Eskom said.

The entity said while there had been an improvement, South Africans are urged to continue using electricity sparingly because the power system remains vulnerable and unpredictable.

“Eskom will communicate timeously should there be any significant changes to the power system.”

#POWERALERT1

Eskom to suspend loadshedding from 21:00 tonight as generation units have returned to service pic.twitter.com/rV90UtVdu4

— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) November 19, 2021

Meanwhile, the Democratic Alliance (DA) has said that it has written to the Speaker of National Assembly Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula and the chairperson of the National Council of Provinces Amos Masondo to request for a joint sitting of the two houses so that President Cyril Ramaphosa can address the nation on the “unfolding electricity crisis”.

Should the rolling blackouts continue unabated, investor confidence in South Africa will continue to erode and the ability of our economy to recover from the low growth trap that it is currently ensnared in will be impossible.

— Democratic Alliance (@Our_DA) November 18, 2021