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Johannesburg - A marked deterioration in the quality of total coal deliveries to Eskom has been the trend since 2006, the parastatal said on Tuesday.
"A step change occurred from 19.5MJ/kg (megajoules per kilogram) to 19.0MJ/kg," Eskom said.
The reason was partly the increasing focus on higher quality coal for export markets by SA coal miners.
The stations which suffered significant deteriorations were Duvha, Matla and Arnot. "Hendrina and Kendal were affected to a lesser extent, while the quality at the remainder of the stations remained either relatively constant or showed improvement over time."
These trends, together with higher load factors, resulted in significant coal-related load losses and the equivalent financial loss to Eskom was about R1bn.
Turning to the transport of coal, Eskom said it would - within the next five years - change from road to rail transport.
"We have to put the infrastructure in place and we are working with different stakeholders in ensuring that this happens."
Eskom said rail would be cheaper and safer than road transport.