Pretoria
- The government is committed to keeping the lights on even though
power generation is under pressure, Public Enterprises Minister
Malusi Gigaba said on Monday.
He
told a business executive meeting in Pretoria that this commitment to
an uninterrupted electricity supply did not depend only on the
government.
"I
trust we shall all heed the call for efficient and prudent usage of
electricity. We remain resolute in our efforts to keep the lights on
during this supply-constrained environment we are currently in,"
he said.
"Accordingly,
we continue to rely on all South Africans, both individuals and
corporates, to continue reducing demand and saving electricity by
implementing the tips we give them through the media. We cannot do
this on our own."
Gigaba
said illegal power connections were a major obstacle to a constant
power supply.
"We
need the effort of every single person of the 49 million (South
Africans). This means we must continue to curb illegal connections
and cable theft, which increase network overload and equipment
failure," he said.
"This
causes the system to trip and results in localised power outages in
the distribution networks in areas such as Gauteng. We continue
working together with the police and municipalities to raise
awareness in this regard," said Gigaba.
He
said many companies had made significant contributions to energy
saving under the 49M energy-saving campaign over the past three
years.
"However,
more commitment is still needed from you (the business community) in
the coming months and over the next year to ensure the lights stay
on.
"This
will ensure that economic growth and jobs are not put at risk.
"The
same is expected from households, the majority of whom are supplied
by municipalities. Our call for energy efficiency is not new and we
thank those partnering with us in the 49M campaign," Gigaba
said.
"The
state of the power system needs urgent and immediate action to enable
Eskom to meet the demand and keep the sufficient reserves for
emergencies," he said.
"We
cannot, as a country, continue to keep the lights on in the short
term in a way that undermines doing the same in the long term."
Eskom
has urged all South Africans to continue using electricity sparingly,
as power generation remains under severe pressure.
The
power utility's chairman Zola Tsotsi said future generations would
suffer if energy saving was not prioritised by every individual in
the country.
"We
may be a small group sitting in this room, but everyone of us has the
power to save electricity. If we start exercising that power now, we
would change the way people around us use energy," he said.
"We
all know that resources used to produce energy are limited and if we
continue to take these resources for granted and we continue to waste
energy, our future generations will not have enough to produce the
energy required," said Tsotsi.
"Let's
make a difference, the gains are limitless. If you are not using it,
switch it off. Use power to save it. This is a call to action for
everyone to be energy efficient," he said.
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