Eskom announced via social networking website Twitter on Tuesday evening that it would implement stage 2 load shedding in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
The announcement follows the reintroduction of load shedding for the first time in 2020, after the utility managed to avoid implementing load shedding during Christmas and new year's eve of 2019.
In the statement, Eskom said it would implement stage 2 load shedding from 01:00 to 06:00 on Wednesday as a way of maximising the availability of electricity during the working day, as South Africans prepare to get back to work for the new year.
The utility also said delaying the implementation of load shedding to 01:00 in the morning would allow matric pupils the opportunity to access their results through various platforms, and give them time to get home safely.
"Owing to a loss of additional capacity, emergency reserves had to be extensively utilised to supplement capacity during the day," the Eskom statement said.
Eskom said it would work to return its units from planned and unplanned outages.
The statement added that inadequate maintenance also left the electricity system vulnerable to unplanned outages, which the utility was also working to address.