South Africans have taken to social media to dispute Eskom’s claim that the country has gone 328 days without load-shedding, arguing that power cuts are still a daily reality in many communities.
The power utility announced that South Africa has not experienced load-shedding for 328 consecutive days, with the energy availability factor (EAF) sitting above 65%.
Eskom attributed the improvement to stronger generation performance and progress under its Generation Recovery Plan.
“Eskom continues to deliver a reliable and resilient electricity supply, supported by strengthening generation performance and a sustained reduction in reliance on emergency generation,” the utility said in a statement.
It also said that for the current 2026 financial year to date (April 1-9), EAF stands at 64.36%, up from 54.14% during the same period last year.
The announcement comes as Cyril Ramaphosa visited the Kusile Power Station in Mpumalanga on Friday.
The facility has now reached full capacity, adding 4,800MW to the national grid, a development Ramaphosa said significantly contributes to resolving South Africa’s energy crisis.
Despite Eskom’s optimistic outlook, many South Africans say the reality on the ground tells a different story.
On X, Siphokazi Sowazi said: “The fact that we in the suburbs do not experience load-shedding does not mean it’s no longer there. Speak to the people in the townships, then write something factual. We do not represent the majority of South Africans. This is a blatant lie.”
Another user, Andy Bapela, echoed this sentiment, saying, “Where is your eye witnessing this? South Africa still has load-shedding every day, and some places have gone dark for years. So there’s no South Africa that marks 328 days without load-shedding.”
The comments reflect a broader debate, with some users arguing that while formal, scheduled load-shedding may have eased, many communities continue to face frequent outages.
Part of the confusion stems from the difference between load-shedding and load reduction.
Load-shedding is a planned, national intervention where electricity supply is cut in stages to prevent the collapse of the grid when demand exceeds supply.
Load reduction involves targeted and often unannounced power cuts in specific areas, usually those affected by illegal connections, infrastructure strain or non-payment. These outages are not classified as load-shedding but still result in communities being left without power.
Eskom acknowledged challenges in this regard.
“Although the power system remains stable and generation capacity continues to exceed demand, illegal connections and meter tampering persist, causing infrastructure damage and posing serious safety risks,” it said.
Improvements and challenges
The utility reported several improvements in system performance:
- Unplanned outages dropped to 8,981MW between April 3 and 9, down significantly from 13,930MW a year ago;
- Spending on diesel fell by more than 96% year-on-year, from R1.34bn to R49.81m;
- More than 10 months of uninterrupted power supply have been recorded; and
- 2,132MW is currently held in cold reserve due to excess capacity.
Eskom also highlighted progress in reducing load reduction, with 211 feeders removed so far, benefiting more than 342,000 customers nationwide.
It admitted that resistance to smart meter installations, including intimidation and violence against staff, has delayed progress in some areas.
Eskom said it is working towards eliminating load reduction entirely by 2027 through infrastructure upgrades, smart meter rollouts and community engagement.
“Every week, we continue to see improvements in reliability and system resilience,” the utility said, adding that its Winter Outlook will be released on April 17.
TimesLIVE
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