Eskom Latest: Reduced Outages at Weekend; New Generation Head
(Bloomberg) -- South Africa’s state-owned electricity provider will reduce power cuts during the daytime over the weekend as it expects lower demand.
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Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. will implement so-called stage 5 loadshedding, when it removes 5,000 megawatts from the grid, between 5 a.m. and 4 p.m on Saturday and stage 4 during the same timeslot on Sunday. It will continue to cut 6,000 megawatts in late afternoons and at night, the utility said on Twitter.
New Head of Generation (April 14, 8:29 a.m.)
Eskom appointed Bheki Nxumalo as head of generation, a key role at the utility that’s failing to meet electricity demand because of frequent breakdowns at poorly maintained power plants.
Previously head of Eskom Rotek Industries, a construction and logistics unit of Eskom, Nxumalo has also served as manager at two power plants, Eskom said in a statement. He will report directly to acting Chief Executive Officer Calib Cassim.
Nxumalo is the third person in a year to hold the position of head of generation. His predecessor, Rhulani Mathebula, quit in November — six months into the job — after failing to improve the division’s performance. Eskom is also in the process of searching for a permanent CEO, after the resignation of Andre de Ruyter.
South Africa Faces Risk of Unrest (April 13, 6:13 p.m.)
South Africa faces a winter of social unrest as sustained power outages limit economic growth and job creation, amid a cost-of-living crisis and increasing political tensions ahead of elections scheduled for next year, according to the Centre For Risk Analysis.
Africa’s most-industrialized economy is likely to be plagued by 43 weeks of severe blackouts, in which state-owned company Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. will impose daily outages of as much as 5,000 megawatts as it seeks to protect the national power grid from collapse, Chris Hattingh, the think tank’s head of policy analysis, said in a note. The projection is based on the power utility’s latest energy outlook, which suggests it won’t be able to meet demand during any week through March next year, he said.
Eskom’s Biggest Union Demands 15% Pay Hike (April 13, 4:41 p.m.)
The biggest labor union at Eskom demanded a 15% wage increase, as the cash-strapped utility struggles to generate enough power to meet the country’s needs, resulting in daily blackouts.
The National Union of Mineworkers wants the same raise for all workers, along with other increases in allowances for housing and other benefits, it said in a copy of a letter to Eskom seen by Bloomberg.
Read more: Eskom’s Biggest Union Demands 15% Pay Hike as Outages Worsen (2)
Eskom Expects Transmission Firm to Be Running in Third Quarter (April 13, 1:03 p.m.)
Eskom expects to complete the spin off of its transmission company in the third quarter, according to Chairman Mpho Makwana.
Fast-tracking the process to add a separate board of directors and other measures needed to hive off the unit will create a competitive electricity trading platform that’s part of a turnaround plan to “restore healthy energy availability” and end record power outages by March 2025, Makwana said.
--With assistance from Simbarashe Gumbo and Prinesha Naidoo.
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