Eskom has confirmed that the national power system remains stable but constrained, with planned reinforcements of nearly 3 000MW set to return to the grid before the evening peak on Monday, 2 June 2025. The utility has highlighted that while unplanned outages remain high, strategic emergency reserves are being effectively deployed to manage winter demand surges.
The announcement follows the successful return of Kusile Unit 1 to service today after its reconnection to the repaired flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) system and permanent stack. Once fully ramped up, the unit will add 800MW to the national grid. At full operation, Kusile Power Station will deliver a total of 4 800MW, significantly bolstering generation capacity and improving Eskom’s Energy Availability Factor (EAF).
However, the Unplanned Capacity Loss Factor (UCLF) has slightly increased to 28.60% for the financial year to date, compared to 28.43% over the same period last year. Eskom attributes this to delays in returning units from planned maintenance. Currently, planned maintenance averages 6 197MW, making up 13.25% of total generation capacity—2.6% higher than last year’s figures.
The utility also reported an increase in the Open-Cycle Gas Turbine (OCGT) load factor to 12.70% this week, up from 7.65% the previous week. Diesel consumption remains within budget, with expectations that it will decline as more units come back online.
As outlined in the 2025 Winter Outlook, loadshedding is avoidable if unplanned outages stay below 13 000MW. At 15 000MW, only 21 days of Stage 2 loadshedding may be necessary. As of today, unplanned outages stand at 13 327MW, and Eskom’s available generation capacity—excluding Kusile Unit 6—is at 29 913MW, just above the projected evening peak of 28 778MW.
In total, R3.54 billion has been spent so far this year to fuel the OCGT fleet, producing 595.33GWh of power, compared to 219.37GWh this time last year.
Eskom has also issued a public warning against illegal electricity connections and energy theft, which often lead to transformer failures and extended outages. With May recognised as National Energy Month, the utility urges South Africans to practice responsible usage and report illegal activity via its Crime Line or WhatsApp.
An update on system performance is expected on Friday, 6 June 2025.
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