This will however require R500 million in diesel consumption to keep the lights on. IF the unplanned outages with generation increase to 13 000 MW, there could be 2 days of Phase 1 load shedding, which will require R1.7 billion in diesel costs. And if another 1 000 MW is lost, there could be 29 days of loadshedding, with Phase 2 being the highest possible phase.
Meanwhile, Eskom CEO, Andrè de Ruyter says the power utility’s unplanned capacity outages is currently sitting at one of its lowest levels, it’s ever been. The Medupi power station, where an explosion was reported in August of last year, and the Koeberg Unit 2, which is currently out of service for maintenance also contributes to the decreased availability of power on the national grid.