Load shedding: the what, when and...

South Africans first experienced load shedding in 2007. Today, it’s a part of our everyday lives. While the constant (and often unpredictable) power outages can leave us charged up, it helps to understand load shedding and what it’s all about. In this 10-minute read, Old Mutual iWYZE explains…

Why do we have load-shedding? After 1994, Eskom undertook an electrification programme in an attempt to provide all South Africans with access to electricity. While the number of South African households who now have access to electricity has grown from 50.7% in 1994 to 92.7% during the most recent survey, insufficient maintenance and a failure to build new power stations as planned has led to an inability to keep up with the growing demand. As a result, Eskom now has to deliberately cut power to avoid a collapse of a system that simply can’t keep up – this is known as load shedding.

Load shedding stages – what do they mean?

• Stage 1: Requires up to 1,000 MW of electricity to be shed and can be implemented three times over a four-day period for two hours at a time, or three times over an eight-day period for 4 hours at a time.
• Stage 2: Will double the frequency of Stage 1, which means you will be scheduled for load-shedding six times over a four-day period for two hours at a time, or six times over an eight-day period for four hours at a time.
• Stage 3: Will increase the frequency of Stage 2 by 50 percent, which means you will be scheduled for load-shedding nine times over a four-day period for two hours at a time, or nine times over an eight-day period for four hours at a time.
• Stage 4: Will double the frequency of Stage 2, which means you will be scheduled for load-shedding 12 times over a four-day period for two hours at a time, or 12 times over an eight-day period for four hours at a time.
  
  

Load shedding schedules
Load shedding schedules are available from various sources. It’s worth noting though that the schedule is not always 100% reliable. They do serve well as a general guideline. A good idea is to search your smart phone app store for a load shedding schedule app. With an app, you can look up your suburb and receive frequent notifications as things change.

For municipal load shedding schedules:

• Johannesburg: visit www.citypower.co.za, call 086 056 2874, or follow them on Twitter @CityPowerJhb.
• Tshwane: visit www.tshwane.gov.za, call (012) 358-2111 / (012) 427-2111, or follow them on Twitter @CityTshwane.
• Cape Town: visit www.capetown.gov.za, call 0860 103 089, or follow them on Twitter @CityofCT.
• eThekwini: visit www.durban.gov.za, call 080 13 13 111, or follow them on Twitter @eThekwiniM.
• Mangaung: visit www.mangaung.co.za or call 0800 111 300.

Load shedding is a reality we have to deal with. An important part of being prepared is making sure that your home insurance cover will have your back in any event. Trust Old Mutual iWYZE for a powerful solution that you can rely on. Get an instant, online quote today!

Sources:

• https://www.fin24.com/Economy/Eskom/sunday-read-load-shedding-through-the-years-and-how-eskom-has-struggled-to-keep-the-lights-on-20190324
• https://www.enca.com/news/load-shedding-schedules-info-and-how-it-affects-you
• https://www.enca.com/south-africa/infographic-load-shedding-explained