Eskom latest: Electricity outages ramped up to stage 6

Eskom will increase the intensity of electricity outages to the highest level in almost two months, due to the loss of two generation units and an increase in planned maintenance.

Eskom will remove 6 000 megawatts from the grid — known as stage 6 load shedding — from 5 a.m. Tuesday until further notice, it said on X. It’s currently shedding 5 000 megawatts.

The last time stage 6 was implemented was July 13, according to EskomSePush, an app that compiles data on load shedding.

CEO pick process requires ‘enhanced’ due diligence (September 1, 10:54 a.m.)

The appointment of a permanent chief executive officer for Eskom is at an “advanced shareholder review stage,” though it requires additional checks because of the importance of the role to South Africa, according to the utility.

Andre de Ruyter stepped down as Eskom’s boss on February 22 after criticising the government and the ruling party over corruption.

Chairman Mpho Makwana said in March that there was a “rich” choice of candidates. “Given the systemic impact such an appointment has on Eskom and the country, an enhanced due diligence process has had to be conducted,” the company said in a reply to questions late Thursday.

South Africa signs accords for 203MW of power under emergency plan (August 30, 8:18 p.m.)

South Africa’s Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe signed agreements for renewable energy projects with two additional preferred bidders.

The projects totaling 203 megawatts form part of the Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme and comprise a combination of solar photovoltaic, onshore wind and battery storage technologies, the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy said in a statement.

Energy fund for farmers (August 29, 3:23 p.m.)

South Africa’s government established a fund to reduce the effect of power outages on the agriculture industry and encourage investment in alternative energy, Agricultural and Land Reform Minister Thoko Didiza said.

The fund — a joint project between the Department of Agriculture and Land Reform and the Land & Agricultural Development Bank of South Africa — will provide a combination of loans and grants to qualified recipients, Didiza told reporters in the capital, Pretoria, on Tuesday. It will have R1.21 billion ($65 million), with R500 million provided by the department and the remainder as loans from the Land Bank.

“The priority will be on supporting dairy farmers, piggeries, poultry, all irrigated commodities and on-farm processing,” she said.

© 2023 Bloomberg