Eskom published the weekend loadshedding schedule starting on Friday, which forecasts reduced outages.
UPDATE: On Friday, 22 December 2023, Eskom extended the suspension of loadshedding by a week. Read the utility’s statement below.
“Due to consistent improvement in available generation capacity and the lower demand, as well as sufficient emergency reserves, loadshedding will remain suspended until next week Friday at 16:00.”
Weekend loadshedding schedule starting Friday, 22 December 2023
On Sunday, 17 December 2023, Eskom extended the suspension of outages to Friday, 22 December 2023 at 16:00, citing “consistent improvement in available generating capacity.”
While the power utility had not updated the schedule for the weekend when this article was published, Electricity Minister Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa indicated in a recent press briefing that with demand currently below Eskom’s available capacity, the festive season is likely to resume with no outages.
“The demand is averaging about 24 695 MW and that’s why you’re not seeing load shedding. We’re working behind the scenes. We are aggressive on the maintenance, the system performing, but the point I want to make is consistency…because time and time again I come before the nation, and I say there’s been a cluster of units that have failed. That’s something that we want to avert, and I can’t guarantee that that won’t happen. I think it’s important that I make that statement,” he said.
Barring any further updates from Megawatt Park, households should enjoy uninterrupted access to electricity this weekend.
Here’s a look at the provisional weekend loadshedding schedule starting Friday, 22 December 2023:
| Date | Morning Peak (05:00 – 16:00) | Evening Peak (16:00 – 05:00) |
| Friday 22 Dec 2023 | Suspended* | Suspended* |
| Saturday 23 Dec 2023 | Suspended* | Suspended* |
| Sunday 24 Dec 2023 | Suspended* | Suspended* |
Update on breakdowns and available capacity
The last state of the power system update was on Sunday, 17 December 2023. At the time, Eskom reported more than 12 648MW of generation capacity lost to breakdowns, with an additional 8 728MW offline due to several units placed out of commission for planned maintenance.
Here is a snapshot of Eskom’s energy availability, observed from the evening peak period of Wednesday, 20 December 2023: