Power utility Eskom says it is keeping a hawk's eye on its power stations in the midst of ongoing load shedding, as it implements varying stages of the electricity-saving measure.

Eskom’s Head of Generation, Thomas Conradie, said at a media briefing held this afternoon, in partnership with the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS), that there are currently no plans to increase load shedding from Stage 6 to Stage 8.

“This has been a very difficult week for all of us due to some plants not being in action,” said Conradie.

According to Conradie, wet coal and poor weather conditions contributed to Eskom implementing Stage 6.

“We had problems getting coal because of rain and poor weather but we are maintaining all our power plants,” Conradie said, adding that the parastatal has managed to recover some of its units.

While there is some improvement, Conradie said "some risks" lie ahead.

Earlier this week, Eskom said due to the breakdowns of a number of generation units, Stage 6 load shedding would be implemented continuously until further notice.

Last weekend, the turbine on Unit 2 of the Koeberg Nuclear Power Station tripped while work was being done to replace a failed electronic turbine protection module. The reactor responded to the turbine trip by reducing power and it remained critical, as designed, with no nuclear safety consequences.

National Treasury has proposed to provide Eskom with R254 billion in debt relief over the next three years. This was on Wednesday confirmed by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana while delivering the 2023 Budget Speech.

Of the R254 billion debt relief, R168 billion will be in capital, while R86 billion will be in interest, said Treasury in its 2023 Budget Review document. In the report, Treasury said Eskom’s operational failures were intertwined with its “untenable” financial position.

Since 2008/09, government has provided the utility with R263.4 billion in bailouts. These allocations, Treasury said, have failed to stem the collapse of Eskom’s balance sheet and operations.

With a current R423 billion debt on its books, Treasury said the figure imposes an “enormous drain on the economy”.

Recently, Eskom, National Treasury and the Department of Public Enterprises agreed to design a mechanism for building new transmission infrastructure that will allow for extensive private-sector participation in the development of the transmission network.

In this regard, Treasury has appointed an international consortium with extensive experience in the operations of coal-fired power stations to review all plants in Eskom’s coal fleet and advise on operational improvements. The review is scheduled to conclude by mid-2023. Eskom is required to implement the operational recommendations emanating from this independent assessment.

Meanwhile, Eskom on Friday announced the appointment of Calib Cassim as Interim Group Chief Executive Officer with immediate effect.

Cassim will lead the Eskom management team until further notice.

Cassim was appointed as Eskom’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in November 2018 after serving as Acting CFO from July 2017.

Source: South African Government News Agency