Eskom has announced that load-shedding will remain in stage 5 until 05:00 on Tuesday, 7 March 2023, after which it will drop to stage 4 until 16:00.
This rotation will remain in effect until further notice, and the power utility warned that further breakdowns could result in increased load-shedding at short notice.
“Stage 5 load-shedding will be implemented until 05:00 tomorrow. Thereafter, stage 4 load-shedding will be implemented until 16:00. This pattern will be repeated until further notice,” Eskom said.
The power utility attributed the need for stage 5 load-shedding in the evenings and overnight to several unit breakdowns and delays in returning offline units to service.
“Over the past 24 hours, a generating unit each at Arnot, Tutuka and two units at Duvha power station were taken offline for repairs,” it said.
“The return to service of a generating unit each at Medupi, Matla, Tutuka and two units at Hendrina Power Station are delayed.”
Eskom said repairs are continuing on two damaged towers from Cahora Bassa in Mozambique, and it anticipates that they will return to operation by next week.
The power utility currently has 4,659MW of generation capacity offline for scheduled maintenance and a further 17,622MW unavailable due to breakdowns.
It added that it had successfully returned to service a unit at each the Camden, Lethabo, Kriel, Majuba, and Matimba power stations over the past 24 hours.
“We urge all South Africans to continue using electricity sparingly to help alleviate the pressure on the power system,” Eskom said.
The load-shedding schedule from Monday, 6 March 2023, to Thursday, 9 March, is summarised in the table below.
| Eskom load-shedding timetable from 6 March 2023 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Day | Start Time | End Time | Stage |
| 6 March 2023 | Monday | 16:00 | 24:00 | 5 |
| 7 March 2023 | Tuesday | 00:00 | 05:00 | 5 |
| 05:00 | 16:00 | 4 | ||
| 16:00 | 24:00 | 5 | ||
| 8 March 2023 | Wednesday | 00:00 | 05:00 | 5 |
| 05:00 | 16:00 | 4 | ||
| 16:00 | 24:00 | 5 | ||
| 9 March 2023 | Thursday | 00:00 | 05:00 | 5 |