Page 4 - AfrElec Week 49

AfrElec COMMENTARY AfrElec
Eskom’s outlook is bleak as worst ever power cuts hit SA
Accusations of sabotage cannot hide poor maintenance and mismanagement. The power crisis could push the country into recession
SOUTH AFRICA
WHAT:
Up to 6,000MW has been removed from the grid
WHY:
Eskom has blamed flooding and breakdowns at key power plants
WHAT NEXT:
The government has promised no more power cuts over Christmas,
but long-term, not emergency, solutions are neede
SOUTH African President Cyril Ramaphosa has said that Eskom will stabilise the national grid and end power cuts by March in an effort to calm popular protests and to avoid any long- term harm to the economy.
“Going right through March, they will be seeking to do everything they can to restore the stability of the network,” Ramaphosa said after crisis meetings with Eskom officials.
His comment follows a week of power cuts across the country – the worst ever seen, say many – with floods, heavy rain and maintenance mistakes all being blamed for the loss of up to 2,000 MW of supply.
There were also many accusations of sabo- tage in the media, with Ramaphosa himself also referring to actions by unknown people.
“There are certain people within the system who take it upon themselves to go and switch off certain instruments that finally lead to us losing so many megawatts,” he said.
Eskom itself referred to a “perfect storm” of events, with Eskom COO Jan Oberholzer blam- ing a combination of high rainfall and technical issues at coal-fired thermal power plants (TPPs), Reuters reported.
Eskom said there was a major breakdown at
the flagship Medupi power plant, while the Kriel power plant and adjacent coal mine had suffered from severe flooding.
One key problem is overdue maintenance at many power stations, Eskom said. Company officials say they need 5,000 MW of new capacity to allow many elderly but vital coal-fired TPPs to be closed down for maintenance.
His comments come after a week of major problems for Eskom. There was up to 6,000 MW of supply offline on December 9, reducing to 2,000 MW on December 11.
Eskom has not been able to rule out further power cuts, with the risk of rolling blackouts remaining high all week. The company’s social media accounts have publicised long lists of times and places that will experience interrup- tions to power supplies.
Political risk
As well as short-term inconvenience, Eskom’s fate is of major political importance. Ramaphosa cut short a visit to Egypt to visit the flagship Medupi power plant, while the South Africa’s lenders and global ratings agencies have identi- fied Eskom’s financial troubles and the govern- ment’s attempted reforms as the most influential
There are certain
people within
the system who
take it upon
themselves to
go and switch
off certain
instruments that
finally lead to us
losing so many
megawatts
SA President Cyril Ramaphosa
P4
w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 49
12•December•2019