Eskom published the weekend loadshedding schedule starting on Friday, which forecasts reduced outages.
UPDATE: On Friday, 8 December 2023, Eskom made changes to the loadshedding schedule. See the updates below.
Weekend loadshedding schedule starting Friday, 8 December 2023
On Thursday, Eskom adjusted the loadshedding schedule to Stage 3 from 16:00 to 05:00 the next day, and Stage 2 from Saturday morning until the afternoon.
Therefore, this weekend, the loadshedding schedule will follow a pattern of Stage 2 and Stage 3, with a likely suspension in outages anticipated for Sunday, between 05:00 and 16:00.
“Eskom will continue monitoring the power system closely, adjust and communicate the stages of loadsheding as required,” the power utility said.
Here’s a look at the weekend loadshedding schedule starting Friday, 8 December 2023:
| Date | Morning Peak (05:00 – 16:00) | Evening Peak (16:00 – 05:00) |
| Friday 8 Dec 2023 | Stage 4 | Stage 3 |
| Saturday 9 Dec 2023 | Stage 2* | Stage 3* |
| Sunday 10 Dec 2023 | Suspended* | Stage 3* |
Update on breakdowns and available capacity
The last state of the power system update was on Friday, 8 December 2023. At the time, Eskom reported more than 13 461MW of generation capacity lost to breakdowns, with an additional 7 321MW 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, 6 December 2023: