Johannesburg – Eskom has suspended load control.
The Power Utility announced on Friday: “The power supply system is stable and load suppression will be stopped from 22:00 on Thursday (May 15, 2025).
“Although it is stable, the system remains restrained, with proper emergency preparedness and strategically deployed to support demand during peak winter months.
“To further stabilize the grid, we expect a production capacity of 2 650mW will be returned to service ahead of the peak on Monday evening, May 19, 2025.”
Eskom said the unplanned capacity loss coefficient (UCLF) measuring unplanned outages is 28.30% for pensions (April 1-May 15, 2025).
“This reflects a slight improvement of about 0.2% compared to 28.47% recorded in the same period last year,” Power Utility explained.
“Annual planned maintenance averaged 6 669MW, accounting for 14.26% of total production capacity, an increase of 3.1% compared to the previous year.
“As the winter season begins, planned maintenance has decreased, with an average of 507MW of 5407MW this week (May 9-15) a little higher than the typical winter maintenance level of past years.”
Eskom said the open cycle gas turbine (OCGT) load factor increased to 10.94% this week, versus 3.87% in the previous week (2-8 May 2025).
The OCGT load factor since the beginning of the year reflects a 2.8% decrease compared to the previous week's annual figures.
Eskom said diesel usage is expected to decrease as more units return from long-term repair and maintenance activities, and the available generation capacity will increase.
“The winter outlook released on May 5, 2025 covers the period ending on August 31, 2025, but remains in effect,” Power Utility said.
“If an unplanned outage falls below 13,000MW, it indicates that a roadshed is not needed.”
Eskom said if the outage rises to 15,000mW, the load limit will be limited to a maximum of 21 days of the 153 days and will be limited to Stage 2. Key Performance Highlights:
•From May 9th to 15th, 2025, the unscheduled outage averaged 14,162MW, representing an increase of 2,490MW compared to the same period last year, 162MW outperforming the 13,000mW base case.
The average unplanned outage for the previous fiscal year is 13 456MW.
Unplanned outage variations were driven primarily by stop slips. This occurs when the initially scheduled unit for planned maintenance is reclassified as unplanned beyond the scheduled maintenance time.
•As of today, the unscheduled suspensions have increased from 11 670MW recorded last week to 14 310MW. Currently, the available generation capacity is 28 548MW (excluding Kusile Units 6 to 720MW), but peak demand for tonight is projected at 28 523MW.
•The previous day's energy availability coefficient (EAF) was 56.97% compared to 59.98% in the same period last year. This decline is primarily due to a 3.1% increase in planned maintenance compared to the previous year, excluding 720MW from Kusile Unit 6, which is not yet commercially operated.
•From the beginning of the year, Eskom spent roughly R28.5 billion on fuel for the OCGT fleet, generating 478.63 GWH. This is higher than the 176.85GWH generated in the same period last year.
•The OCGT load factor since the start of the year was 12.98%, representing a 2.8% decrease from the previous week. However, this is higher than the 4.80% recorded in the same period last year.
Protect your transformers this winter – avoid illegal connections and prevent power failures
Load control remains suspended and electricity demand continues to grow over the winter, but Eskom urges its public to avoid illegal connections and energy theft.
These activities often lead to transformer overload, equipment failure, and in some cases explosions and expansion stops, prompting the need to reduce the load to protect the network.
To maintain a stable power supply this winter, we recommend that customers only purchase power from Eskom certified vendors and take responsibility for normalizing their power usage.
Eligible households are encouraged to register free basic electricity with their local municipalities. Illegal activities affecting Eskom's infrastructure must be reported to Eskom Crime Line via WhatsApp on 0800 112 722 or 081 333 3323.
May will be National Energy Month, and Eskom will encourage the public to use electricity efficiently.
Every effort to save energy will support a more sustainable future for the environment, the economy and future generations.
Track and manage your household items using Eskom's residential calculator: https://www.eskom.co.za/distribution/residential-calculator/
