South Africa has recently been hit with powercuts with state-owned power utility struggling to handle demand due to the pressing issue with their under fire coal stations. Many of these stations are struggling with dwindling coal reserves which impacts their ability to produce sufficient power to sustain the grid. The situation has been relieved slightly due to the powercuts although it might make a comeback after mid-Jan, with many factories and businesses reopening after the holiday period.
This was confirmed by Eskom Chief Executive Officer Phakamani Hadebe, stating that there is a high chance that a stage one load shedding warning would be put in place, which dictates a need to shed 1 000 megawatts off the grid.
Earlier this year, President Cyril Ramaphosa replaced the board of Eskom to help root out corruption that contributed to the unsustainable financial state at the ailing company that supplies almost all of the nation’s electricity.