Publications
Partners
Eskom: Going nowhere slowly
If there has been one reason to celebrate this festive season, as the economy continues to take a nose dive, it would be that Eskom has given us a reprieve from load shedding.
South Africans may be revelling in the fact that they can switch on the lights on their Christmas tree or watch their favourite Christmas movie right through, but the power grid's fragility remains a concern.
With businesses and factories closed for the holidays, demand is lower. That doesn't mean we might not see any load shedding during the holidays. Last year, due to breakdowns, Stage 2 load shedding was implemented on New Year's Eve.
2023 is on record as being the worst year for load shedding. According to the app, EskomSePush, South Africa had 408 390 minutes of load shedding, which is 86% more than any other year since the app first started measuring load shedding in 2015.
Eskom's interim results for the six months to end-September released earlier this month showed that it continues on the road downhill in almost every regard, despite government claiming it has turned the corner. The power utility also has been unable to secure additional generational capacity, meaning load shedding is guaranteed when people go back to work.
In this week's Friday Briefing, News24's investigative reporter and author of Sabotage: Eskom under siege, Kyle Cowan writes that the battles of 2023 mean we have yet to take any steps forward in terms of solving the short- or long-term energy security riddle. He predicts we'll see much of the same next year in terms of load shedding.
We hope this edition of Friday Briefing doesn't put too much of a damper on your Christmas cheer, but gives you more insight into what to expect when everyone gets back into the swing of things.
Best,
Vanessa Banton
Opinions editor.
2023 was Eskom’s worst year on record... and you can expect much the same in 2024
Eskom had its worst year on record in 2023. Kyle Cowan details why 2024 won’t be any different, despite it being an election year.
Disclaimer: News24 encourages freedom of speech and the expression of diverse views. The views of columnists published on News24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of News24.
