Eskom load shedding stage 4 Pravin Gordhan

From left: Public Enterprises Minister, Pravin Gordhan talks to Eskom Chairman Jabu Mabuza at the press conference relating to the 2018/2019 Intergrated Annual Results, 30 July 2019, at Megawatt Park in Sunninghill, Johannesburg. Picture: Alaister Russell / Flickr / Amr Amr

Stage 2 load shedding: Eskom left red-faced by statement “blunder”

Eskom had entered a war of words with the Democratic Alliance over a series of load shedding warnings, and it hasn’t ended well for the utility.

Eskom load shedding stage 4 Pravin Gordhan

From left: Public Enterprises Minister, Pravin Gordhan talks to Eskom Chairman Jabu Mabuza at the press conference relating to the 2018/2019 Intergrated Annual Results, 30 July 2019, at Megawatt Park in Sunninghill, Johannesburg. Picture: Alaister Russell / Flickr / Amr Amr

If you’re going to imply someone is lying, at least get your own house in order first: Eskom have been dragged by several politicians who warned that a return to load shedding was imminent recently, only for their fears to be dismissed by the ailing power utility.

Eskom’s previous dismissal over load shedding comes back to haunt them

Well, things have no come full circle for Eskom. Stage 2 load shedding is in place for the duration of Wednesday, and with a mountain of issues to fix, it’s likely that we could end the week in similar fashion. That’s quite a turnaround from a statement they issued less than four weeks ago:

“We would like to assure our customers that no load shedding is planned for either September or October, as indicated by the Democratic Alliance. While no load shedding is expected over the summer, the system is still vulnerable and tight as we ramp up plant maintenance.”

“Eskom CEO Jabu Mabuza is open to discuss these details with Natasha Mazzone [Shadow Public Enterprises Minister]. We continue to encourage residents and businesses to use electricity sparingly. We will keep customers informed about any change to the system”.

Eskom statement from September 2019

Of course, the DA have something to say

As far as assurances go, that was pretty useless. Needless to say, the heavyweights from the DA all piled in. Natasha Mazzone, who raised the warning about a potential new round of load shedding almost a month ago, took no pride in being proved right. John Steenhuisen and Leon Schreiber, however, were more than happy to stick the boot in:

Natasha Mazzone:

“I wish I had been mistaken. Eskom poses the biggest risk to the South African economy. The signs were all there – if we could see it, Eskom best start explaining why they couldn’t see them… Brace yourself South Africa, we’re in for rolling blackouts again.”

John Steenhuisen:

“Must be super embarrassing when the shadow minister knows more about the status of your operation than you do! Of course you will never apologize – that’s symptomatic of how inept and moribund Eskom is and why you are such a risk to our economy.”

Leon Schreiber MP:

“A day after we learnt that Eskom’s millionaire cadres refused to be vetted, they have dumped us into a new round of load shedding. Time for decisive action: end cadre deployment, stop spending millions on managers, and hire skilled public servants.”

How you can help reduce load shedding threats

Meanwhile, as Eskom scramble to implement damage limitation, they have issued a set of guidelines for South Africans trying to navigate the first load shedding schedule in seven months. They are asking the public to help ease the strain on the electricity grid by taking the following actions.

  • Set air-conditioning devices to a minimum of 23C.
  • Switch off geysers when they’re not in use
  • Swimming pool pumps must only run twice a day, for three hours at a time.
  • Don’t let your computers or electronic devices go into sleep mode – turn them off completely.