Kgosiensho Ramokgopa, Minister of Electricity;
- At Eskom, a large number of power plant units failed due to boiler tube leaks.
- The same generation chief said he had “high confidence” that the virus would reach Stage 4 or below by midweek.
- The electricity minister responded to accusations from ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula that stage six load shedding was a “clear act of sabotage”.
- For more financial news, visit: News24 Business Top Page.
Severe load shedding could last until mid-week after Eskom suffered a mass failure of power plant units due to boiler tube leaks.
Leakages in nine generation units resulted in the outage of 4 400 MW of power generation, equivalent to four or more load shedding stages.
A coal-fired power plant's boiler converts the chemical energy of the coal into kinetic energy via steam piped to a turbo generator, where it becomes electrical energy. The Eskom power station has over 650 kilometers of pipework.
Read | Video: See what happens behind closed doors as Eskom fixes boiler tube leaks
Boiler tube leaks are a major concern for Eskom and it is currently working directly with the equipment manufacturer to investigate the cause of the problem, Power Minister Kgosiensho Ramokgopa said at a briefing on Sunday.
South Africa was hit with Stage 6 load shedding on Friday night as Eskom also had to replenish its pumping dams with water for the coming week.
Eskom generates emergency power at three pumped storage facilities: one near Grabou in the Western Cape and two in KwaZulu-Natal (near Bergville and near Ladysmith).
During weekends and other off-peak periods, Eskom must pump water from the bottom of the dam to the top. This ensures there is enough water to flow through the system through the generators to the bottom dam to generate electricity during peak hours.
Ramokgopa said solar and wind power generation in recent days was also lower than expected due to “climatic conditions.”
Some of the failed units have already been restored. Eskom's generational director Bheki Nxumalo said he had “high confidence” that we would reach Stage 4 or below by midweek.
Reacting to a social media post by ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula that said stage six was the result of “clear sabotage”, Ramokgopa said there were “elements” that were hampering efforts to rebuild Eskom. He said he did not intend to discount the possibility.
However, Ramogopa and Nxumalo did not blame sabotage for the current power outages at the press conference.
They stressed that an investigation into Eskom's misconduct was ongoing. Mr Ramokgopa said Eskom was currently investigating one or two historical incidents where there were unexplained failures.
Stage 6 loadshedding cleared sabotage. Strong additional security measures are required.
— ANC Secretary General | Fikile Mbalula (@MbalulaFikile) February 10, 2024
The last time South Africa experienced Stage 6 was in 2023, for six days in November.
Mr Ramokgopa said Eskom is currently maintaining a high level of maintenance and has removed approximately 7000MW from the grid. This increases the risk of load shedding in the event of an unexpected failure.
However, he stressed that this short-term pain is worth the long-term benefits, as it will result in a “healthier” power plant with improved performance after maintenance.
Mr Ramogopa defended President Cyril Ramaphosa's statement in his State of the Union address that “the end of load shedding is finally within reach”, shortly after the Stage 6 load shedding crisis occurred.
He said the declining level of load shedding in recent months showed the country had “turned a corner,” but he did not want to predict when the load shedding would end.
He said there should be a “significant” period after early March, when more power plant units come online, during which daytime load shedding would be avoided.
