Eskom’s death spiral: Can the network survive??
If you want to get an idea of how bad our electricity crisis is getting, consider the data from the EskomSePush app. The creators have been tracking load shedding since 2015. The Outlier took that data and illustrated it in a load shedding tracker to show how far along we are. dwang.
There were 97 load disconnect days in 2015. None in 2016 and 2017. In 2020, things dipped slightly with 54 load disconnect days. 2022 was the worst year on record so far, with 208 days of load shedding, and it looks like 2023 will be no better. We’ve already had 19 days of load shedding this month, compared to last year, when there was no load shedding in January (our least active month).
If you thought there was light at the end of this tunnel, you would be wrong, despite the fact that load reduction was promised to be addressed within 18 months when the crisis first hit. That never happened. And as the crisis worsens, promises continue to be made. And it will probably all come down to the same result: more darkness.
The opposition parties and law firms have decided to take the path of the courts to try to end the detachment of charges. But as analyst Steven Friedman writes in his subscribers-only column Against the Tide, “it’s hard to see what this will do other than confirm that the political class sees lawsuits as the solution to all problems.” In his News24 column this week, Mpumelelo Mkhabela also questions why an issue of such immense public interest requires a court order. He writes that Parliament must do its job and summon the information of President Cyril Ramaphosa.
In this week’s edition of Friday Briefing, we consider whether there is any way to avoid Armageddon or even whether there is any political will to get out of the mess.
News24’s Kyle Cowan takes a look at three things that could get us out of charge loss faster.
Business Leadership’s Busisiwe Mavuso, Business Unity South Africa’s Cas Coovadia and Energy Council of SA’s James McKay consider the implications of continued load shedding on struggling businesses just out of the Covid pandemic. And DA energy spokesman Kevin Mileham tells us how his party would handle the crisis if he were in charge.
We hope you are bright enough to read this issue as it is important.
Better,
vanessa banton
Opinion editor.
3 things to do today to help fix Eskom and end load disconnect faster
Eskom has significant problems that can be succinctly categorized into three crisis points: time, money and generating capacity. While easy to criticize, the reality is that the utility is not getting adequate help. Here are three things that need to change today to help Eskom repair itself and end load shedding faster, he writes. kyle cowan.
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