After nearly 10 months without loadshedding—thanks to significant improvements from Eskom’s Generation Recovery Plan—a string of technical setbacks has forced the utility to reintroduce controlled power outages. Over the past weekend, multiple generation units at major plants like Majuba, Camden, and Medupi tripped due to issues including transformer overloads and valve failures. These technical failures significantly reduced available capacity, compelling Eskom to escalate outages with Stage 6 loadshedding implemented early Sunday morning. Although several units have been brought back online and restoration efforts are underway, emergency reserves were depleted and need to be replenished, meaning outages would likely persist until full capacity is restored later in the week. This sudden return of loadshedding, while temporary, highlights the continuing challenges posed by an ageing and heavily maintained infrastructure. As of Monday, however, loadshedding has been reduced to Stage 4 following further restoration efforts.
Emergency reserves are being replenished, and the unit returns followed an investigation that revealed unrelated, technical issues with auxiliary electrical and control systems. Planned maintenance currently stands at 7,706MW, with Eskom set to provide an update on Monday afternoon.
Ermelo's schedule
Monday, 24 February 2025:
- 11:00 - 13:30 (Stage 4)
- 19:00 - 21:30 (Stage 4)
Tuesday, 25 February 2025:
- 01:00 - 03:30 (Stage 4)
- 09:00 - 11:30 (Stage 4)
- 17:00 - 19:30 (Stage 4)