Eskom head office at Megawatt Park in Johannesburg. (Luba Lesolle/Gallo Images)
South Africans have been free of planned power cuts for just under two weeks – the longest stretch so far in 2024.
The country experienced 19 days without load shedding over the festive period at the end of last year (14 December 2023 to 2 January 2024), according to data tracked by load shedding app EskomSePush. This, in turn, was beaten by a 20-day streak in 2022.
Energy experts believe the recent reprieve is thanks to fewer unplanned breakdowns Eskom’s coal fleet – combined with a drop in the energy demand placed on Eskom itself.
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