LIVE: SA marks nearly 90 days without load shedding, minister to provide grid update

The Minister of Electricity and Energy, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, will brief the media on Wednesday in Pretoria, offering an update on the state of the country’s electricity grid after a period of improving reliability.

South Africa appears to have steadied the lights after years of outages and inconsistent power supply. 

Reports indicate that by August 12, 2025, the country had experienced no load shedding since May 15, 2025. 

Only 26 hours of load shedding were recorded between April 1 and July 31, 2025, and from May 15 to August 12, 2025, there was no load shedding. In other words, nearly three months of uninterrupted electricity supply.

The electricity utility Eskom issued a statement last Friday highlighting continued grid reliability during winter demand. It noted that when system constraints arise, they are managed through targeted use of emergency reserves during morning and evening peak periods. 

The statement also provided a snapshot of recent performance:

For the week of August 1–7, 2025, planned maintenance averaged 5,343 MW.

The Energy Availability Factor (EAF) ranged between 62% and 70%, with the month-to-date average at 65.38%, signaling growing fleet stability and reliability. 

The figure excludes 720 MW from Kusile Unit 6, which has supplied power to the grid since March 23, 2025, though it has not been in commercial operation.

Eskom plans to return 3,280 MW of generation capacity to service ahead of the evening peak on Monday, August 11, 2025, and throughout the coming week.

The entity said that between April 1 and August 7, 2025, the Unplanned Capability Loss Factor (UCLF) declined to 28.35%, a week-on-week improvement of about 0.23%, though still roughly 2.3 percentage points higher than the 26.06% recorded in the same period last year.

The open-cycle gas turbine (OCGT) load factor reached 5.99% for the week, up from 0.31% the previous week.

As part of ongoing strategies to bolster grid stability, Eskom stated its efforts to maintain system reliability and to deploy planned capacity in anticipation of evening demand.

The minister has long signalled a deepened focus on energy security. 

Earlier this year, Ramokgopa embarked on a working visit to China to strengthen South Africa’s energy capacity and counter declining energy security. 

The trip also aims to advance the country’s transition toward a more reliable and sustainable energy system. 

“The trip is aimed at strengthening South Africa's energy capacity and advancing the transition to a more reliable and sustainable energy system,” said Ramokgopa.

thabo.makwakwa@inl.co.za

IOL Politics