Stage 2 load shedding set to begin at 12pm

Cape Town - Planned load shedding will move from stage 1 to stage 2 from 12:00, Eskom said on Saturday.

Load shedding is expected to move back to stage 1 from 20:00 on Saturday, and will continue until 22:00.

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“Any unexpected changes on the vulnerable and constrained power system could lead to a change in the load shedding stage at short notice,” the utility said in a statement.

“Eskom calls 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.”

The parastatal initially implemented stage 1 load shedding on Saturday morning from 08:00.

This was due to the shortage of generating capacity, the power utility said.

Eskom is struggling to keep the lights on due to a lack of maintenance of its aging power stations, delays in bringing new plants on stream and a severe cash crunch.

The utility is getting a R23bn cash injection from government this year and said in April it would cut power to the top 20 defaulting municipalities from June 5 to help recover outstanding debt.