Eskom says Koeberg Nuclear Power Station’s Unit 1 was safely taken offline just before 01:00 on Thursday morning following a turbine trip.

This follows a temporary reduction in generation earlier this month, taken as a precautionary measure due to seawater intake challenges linked to a sardine influx near the station’s cooling water system.

The power utility says all monitoring systems confirmed stable operating conditions throughout the incident, and nuclear safety was never compromised.

It says there was no risk to employees, the public or the environment, with Koeberg’s protection and monitoring systems functioning as designed.

Eskom says taking Unit 1 offline poses no risk to the national electricity supply, with sufficient generation capacity available and the grid remaining stable and secure.

Unit 1 last underwent major maintenance in October 2025 and has operated reliably since then.

The utility says there is currently no evidence linking Koeberg’s operations to recent sardine mortality or the sardine influx that affected seawater intake at the station.

Eskom says the cause of this morning’s turbine trip is under investigation.