Cape Town - South Africans really had a tough year with ever-increasing inflation rates, fuel prices, and the average household basket skyrocketing but not forgetting the biggest cross they have had to bear - load shedding.
Load shedding was implemented daily for the first time in January 2008 and year on year it has become more frequent but 2022 has been the year it has become the most unbearable.
The ever-struggling power utility has become a constant pain in our necks as daily the implementation of higher stages of load shedding or the slight reduction of stages are announced.
Currently, South Africans are enduring Stage 4 load shedding.
According to the popular load shedding app, EskomSePush, 2022 has been the year with more load shedding than any other year with a 200% increase.
As data collected by the app from December 7, South Africans have endured 930 387 minutes (15 506 hours) of load shedding for 2022 alone.
The app further stated November was one of the months South Africans were hardest hit with 650 hours of load shedding, followed by 570 hours in September and 502 hours in October.
And while South Africa is a resilient nation, its woes will continue into the new year and while many have adapted to “life in the dark” and followed tips for getting off the grid and saving, not everyone is as fortunate to afford the gadgets.
Eskom has announced load shedding will continue to be implemented over the next six to 12 months due to major capital projects and repairs.
The power utility is expected to move ahead with its six-month outage at the Koeberg nuclear power station while it continues to scramble for money to buy diesel.
“Due to the vulnerability and unpredictability of the power system, coupled with the major capital projects, maintenance and major repairs to be executed starting during the next few months, the risk of continued load shedding remains quite high,” Eskom COO Jan Oberholzer said at the time.
The most reliable of Eskom’s generation machines, it is anticipated to return to service in June 2023. This will remove 920MW of generation capacity from the national grid.
Koeberg Unit 2 was returned to service after a forced shutdown to remedy the control rod slippage issue and has been operating for 51 days, said Oberholzer.
The structural collapse that shut down Unit 1 of the Kusile Power Station in October was another serious blow to Eskom.
This will further cripple small businesses already trying to stay afloat with many having to close shop due to ongoing power cuts.
So while there were ongoing calls for Eskom CEO, Andre de Ruyter to step down over the past few months, he finally handed in his resignation from the power utility on December 14.
But, while many have celebrated his resignation, this has brought no reprieve to Mzansi from load shedding.
So with a bleak Christmas ahead with ongoing power cuts, I am sure South Africans are sure to continue their traditions and spread the cheer by making sure their gees (spirit) is as lit as ever.
Happy holidays, Mzansi!
robin.francke@inl.co.za
IOL