Johannesburg – Eskom says the national power system remains stable and resilient in the face of increased winter demand, with no loadshedding implemented since 15 May 2025.
The utility reported just 26 hours of power cuts in the first quarter of its 2025/2026 financial year, covering the period from 1 April to 30 June.
In a performance update released on Friday, Eskom said while occasional constraints do arise, they are effectively managed with sufficient emergency reserves strategically deployed during morning and evening peaks. The utility continues to implement its Generation Recovery Plan to boost long-term grid reliability.
Between 27 June and 3 July, planned maintenance averaged 3 528MW, reflecting a steady decline in planned outages. The Energy Availability Factor (EAF) for the same week ranged between 61% and 64%, with the monthly average rising to 63.29%.
The power system remains stable, supported by sustained technical improvements. A total of 2 350MW is scheduled to return to service by Monday, while unplanned outages are currently being managed within acceptable levels. pic.twitter.com/ZQeWkeOGKG
— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) July 4, 2025
However, unplanned outages remain a concern, with the Unplanned Capability Loss Factor (UCLF) increasing to 29.74% for the financial year to date – a 2.6% rise from 27.17% in the same period last year. As of 3 July, unplanned outages stood at 13 167MW, influenced by technical adjustments including the reclassification of Medupi Unit 4 as unavailable and the exclusion of Kusile Unit 6 from official performance metrics.
Key Performance Figures:
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EAF year-to-date: 58.21%, down from 61.39% year-on-year
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Planned maintenance year-to-date: 5 347MW, or 11.55% of total capacity
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OCGT load factor: Declined to 2.41% from 7.25% the previous week
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OCGT fuel spend: R4.85 billion to generate 824.08GWh, up from 471.18GWh last year
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Unplanned outages (27 June–3 July): Averaged 14 496MW – 1 496MW above Eskom’s 13 000MW base case
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Unplanned outages year-to-date average: 14 091MW
Despite this, Eskom noted that actual unavailable capacity is effectively 1 520MW lower than reported, due to the non-commercial status of Kusile Unit 6 and the reclassification of Medupi Unit 4.
The Winter Outlook, released on 5 May, remains valid. It projects no loadshedding if unplanned outages remain below 13 000MW. Should outages reach 15 000MW, loadshedding would be limited to 21 days and capped at Stage 2 over the 153-day period ending 31 August.
Eskom urged the public to avoid illegal connections and energy theft, which can lead to overloaded transformers, equipment damage, and prolonged outages. The utility encourages consumers to purchase electricity from accredited vendors and to regularise their electricity usage.
