In light of the recent scaling back of loadshedding stages, the Democratic Alliance (DA) has alluded to its suspicion that Eskom halted maintenance for a temporary boost in generation. 

The party has called for Eskom and the departments of Electricity, Mineral Resources and Energy, and Public Enterprises to provide a truthful and transparent account of the recent pattern.

Further, the party highlighted the importance of the public receiving information regarding the extent of planned and unplanned outages at Eskom, the capacity and fuel costs of peaking plants, the amount of electricity procured from neighbouring countries and the source of electricity.

Concerns that Eskom’s energy availability factor remains below 60% coupled with its underperforming coal fleet underscore the party’s sentiment that the African National Congress (ANC) cannot be relied on to resolve the electricity crisis.

Although reduced demand and improved private generation have tapered the gap between supply and demand, the DA opined that any changes to this balance could result in a return to stage six or higher loadshedding.

The DA has called on government to promptly update the information contained in Integrated Resource Plan. This plan guides the government’s decisions on how, when and where to invest in electricity generation and transmission.

“The DA will continue to advocate for an accelerated Integrated Resource Plan that addresses our electricity needs, facilitates the entry of independent power producers into the grid, and promotes self-generation projects to alleviate demand,” said DA Shadow Minister of Electricity Samantha Graham-Mare.

The party has also called on Ministers Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, Gwede Mantashe and Pravin Gordhan to appear before a joint parliamentary committee to detail the expected outcomes beyond the short-term loadshedding alleviation measures.

“We cannot allow a self-inflicted crisis to grant the government unrestricted power to procure, engage in agreements, and expedite legislation without adequate oversight and accountability mechanisms. South Africa must not permit rogue activities masquerading as emergency measures to undermine our path to energy security,” said DA Shadow Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy Kevin Mileham.