Embattled power utility Eskom will continue to alternate between stage three and stage four load shedding until further notice, Eskom said on Sunday.
Stage 3 load shedding would be implemented between 5am and 4pm, while stage 4 will commence from 4pm until 5am daily.
According to the power utility, current breakdowns amount to 17 035MW while planned maintenance is 6,189MW.
The power utility has been struggling to return several generating units which tripped, to service.
As technicians attend to the breakdowns, Eskom has appealed to customers to use electricity sparingly.
“This will continue until further notice. Breakdowns amount to 17,000 megawatts while plant maintenance is 6,200 megawatts,” said Sikonathi Mantshantsha, Eskom’s spokesperson.
He added that Eskom will continue to provide updates on the status of the grid.
This comes after South Africans experienced stage 3 and stage 4 load shedding just days into the new year.
Meanwhile, Eskom is due to face a legal challenge this year in a bid to stop it from applying targeted load reduction on numerous feeder lines across the country.
Pretoria new reports that Sakeliga, the business community that litigates to reform harmful state action and policy, in collaboration with Agri North-West, TLU SA, and affected businesses, launched an application in the High Court in Pretoria, against Eskom, calling for the court to review and set aside the utility’s load reduction policy.
Load reduction is implemented above and beyond national load shedding and causes significant disruption to production processes and damage to equipment.
Load shedding can also impact the food in your fridge.
Speaking to eNCA, heath expert Dr Fundile Nyati says regular power cuts may affect the safety of food in refrigerators and ca result in food poisoning.
The expert believes perishable foods such as meat, fresh fish, milk and cheese are among the food items that can easily be spoiled.
Nyati said if food that is supposed to be kept in the refrigerators at a certain temperature warms up, it could lead to the growth of poisonous bacteria.
Source: Eyewitness News, IOL, Jacaranda FM, image from Twitter: @KayaNews