Cape Town - Eskom announced on Wednesday that it will implement stage 1 load shedding at 4pm, and then move to stage 2 from 5pm to 10pm this evening.
The power utility said this is due to a shortage of generating capacity as several units are currently out of service due to maintenance.
Eskom said it was able to meet demand for the morning, which meant there was no load shedding.
"We expect to meet demand until 4pm today. It is important to note that Eskom implements load shedding as a necessary measure to protect the power system and to ensure that maintenance is carried out in order to guarantee that our supply of electricity can be maintained in the long term," said the power utility.
It called on all customers to reduce the load on the electricity grid by urgently switching off geysers, air conditioners, pool pumps and all non-essential appliances throughout the day, which will reduce electricity demand.