Eskom latest: Coal plant revival report to be submitted this week

German energy consultants have completed a review of Eskom’s struggling coal-fired plants and will submit the report to South Africa’s finance minister this week.

Enoch Godongwana is set to receive the report from consultants led by vgbe energy e.V., a Germany-based technical association of energy-plant operators in 34 countries, this week, National Treasury Director-General Duncan Pieterse told reporters on Tuesday.

Eskom appeals to consumers to reduce power use (September 13, 2:10 p.m.)

South Africa’s state power utility appealed to consumers to reduce electricity use, even as it implements outages that last as long as nine hours a day.

Cold weather across South Africa has led to increased demand, Eskom said in a statement on X, the social-media platform previously known as Twitter. Members of the public should reduce demand by switching off non-essential appliances including geysers, swimming-pool pumps and electric heaters, it said.

“The reduction will continue to assist in alleviating pressure on the system and avoid higher stages of load shedding,” it said.

Eskom has been implementing so-called stage 6 load shedding — in which it cuts 6 000 megawatts of supply from the grid — since Tuesday, following breakdowns at some of its generating units.

Construction firm submitted R1.6bn claims for Kusile (September 12, 2:41 p.m.)

South African construction firm Stefanutti Stocks Holdings has submitted claims of R1.6 billion ($84.1 million) for work at the Kusile power plant, according to a regulatory filing.

Stefanutti and Eskom entered into an arrangement in February 2020 to determine the company’s claims for work done at the 4 800 megawatt coal-fired power plant. That involved appointing independent experts to evaluate the cause, duration and quantification of delays.

The experts will review all claims, draft agreements and narrow issues of difference for referral to a dispute adjudication board, which is expected to issue a binding decision toward the end of its financial year in February 2024, Stefanutti said.

South Africa eyes $3bn NDB loan for transmission, BD says (September 11, 9:48 a.m.)

South Africa may get a $3 billion loan from the New Development Bank, the development-finance institution set up by Brics, to help fund its electricity-transmission network, Business Day reported.

The loan would be disbursed over three years, the Johannesburg-based newspaper cited Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa as saying at a press conference on Sunday.