The electricity supply system remains constrained but stable, Eskom said on Thursday.

“The electricity supply system still remains constrained but stable, meaning that any extra load or faults in the system may necessitate the need to go into load shedding. Eskom will continue to communicate regularly on the status of the power supply situation,” said the power utility.

In its update on the state of the power system, the utility said that contingency measures that have been in place at the Majuba power station have resulted in the improved performance of the plant with five of the six units currently producing a total of 3 000 MW into the power grid. The sixth generating unit is currently offline for maintenance.

A report on the cause of the silo collapse at Majuba power station, last November, is expected to be finalised by the end of next month. The rebuilding of the silo will start soon thereafter and is expected to take about 24 months to complete.

Eskom’s plant maintenance plan is underway at all power stations, including the open cycle gas turbines. Maintenance includes the replacement of parts, servicing of equipment and inspection of facilities at all stations.

“We therefore expect the power grid to remain constrained for the rest of this summer as we perform the requisite maintenance.”

Eskom called on all South Africans to use electricity sparingly.

“Less is more this summer and homeowners and businesses can do so with just four steps: first, switching off geysers and pool pumps; second, switching off non-essential lights; third, efficient use of air-conditioners by keeping the room temperature at 23 ⁰C; and finally, responding to the alerts on TV each evening.”