Electricity supply remains vulnerable in S. Africa: authorities

South Africa's electricity supply system remains very vulnerable as several units are currently out of service, authorities said on Monday.

Load shedding and load curtailment have been implemented from 4: 00 p.m., to 22:00 p.m. at the latest, the national power utility Eskom says.

This is the second consecutive day that stage-two load shedding has been implemented.

Eskom has three stages for load shedding. Stage one allows for up to 1000 megawatts (MW) of the national load to be shed once a day. If the pressure grows, stage two for up to 2000MW or stage three for up to 4000MW will be shed. At stage two, power goes off twice a day, while at stage three, electricity could be cut two or three times a day.

Utilizing load shedding will balance supply and demand in a controlled manner while minimizing the risk of a total blackout, Eskom says.

Any additional change on the already vulnerable and constrained power system could lead to a change in the stage of load shedding at short notice, it adds.

Eskom calls on all customers to reduce the load on the electricity grid by switching off geysers, air conditioners, pool pumps and all non-essential appliances when they don't use them throughout the day.

"Every little bit of saving counts as it reduces the severity of load shedding," the utility said in a statement.

Commercial customers, particularly shopping centers and office blocks, can also make a big difference by switching off non- essential lights and not leaving office equipment such as photocopiers and computers in standby mode after hours, Eskom says.

South Africa has experienced a series of power cuts and load shedding over the past few months.

There have been concerns that the unstable energy supply would slow economic growth, dampen business confidence and impede efforts to create jobs. Endi