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Shedding some light on Eskom’s eight stages of grief and pain

South Africa was once again pushed to Stage 6 load shedding on 12 April and has been there ever since, with some Stage 5 and Stage 4 thrown into the mix. But what exactly are stages 6, 5 and 4, and all the other stages, for that matter?
Shedding some light on Eskom’s eight stages of grief and pain
Victoria O’Regan
By Victoria O’Regan
19 Apr 2023
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Below, we look at Eskom’s load shedding stages and what they mean. 

What stage of load shedding is SA currently on? 


Eskom is currently implementing Stage 5 load shedding from 5am to 4pm daily, and Stage 6 from 4pm to 5am daily. The power utility said this would continue until “further notice”.



If you live in Cape Town, you may be experiencing lesser stages of load shedding. On 19 April, City of Cape Town customers were experiencing  Stage 4 and Stage 6 power cuts. (You can check @CityofCT on Twitter for regular load shedding updates).  

Joburg City Power customers were experiencing Stage 5 and Stage 6 load shedding on 19 April. (You can check @CityPowerJhb on Twitter for regular updates).  

What do the load shedding stages mean? 

According to information on Eskom’s website:

  • Stage 1 means that up to 1,000MW needs to be cut from the grid. Customers can expect to be shed (ie, switched off) up to three times over a four-day period for two hours at a time, or three times over an eight-day period for four hours at a time.

  • Stage 2 means that up to 2,000MW needs to be cut from the grid. Customers can expect to be shed up to six times over a four-day period for two hours at a time, or six times over an eight-day period for four hours at a time.

  • Stage 3 means that up to 3,000MW needs to be cut from the grid. Customers can expect to be shed up to nine times over a four-day period for two hours at a time, or nine times over an eight-day period for four hours at a time.

  • Stage 4 means that up to 4,000MW needs to be cut from the grid. Customers can expect to be shed up to 12 times over a four-day period for two hours at a time, or 12 times over an eight-day period for four hours at a time.

  • Stage 5 means that up to 5,000MW needs to be cut from the grid. Customers can expect to be shed up to 12 times over a four-day period: nine times for two hours and three times for four hours.

  • Stage 6 means that up to 6,000MW needs to be cut from the grid. Customers can expect to be shed up to 12 times over a four-day period: six times for two hours and six times for four hours.

  • Stage 7 means that up to 7,000MW needs to be cut from the grid. Consumers can expect to be shed up to 12 times over a four-day period: three times for two hours and nine times for four hours.

  • Stage 8 means that up to 8,000MW needs to be cut from the grid. Consumers can expect to be shed up to 12 times over a four-day period for four hours at a time.


Each of the time periods has an additional 30 minutes added to allow for the switching of networks in a way that will not damage the system. This means that customers in two-hour load shedding blocks may be without power for two hours and 30 minutes at a time.  

 

Is there any correlation between the load shedding stage and the number of hours you are without power?


No. “There is no correlation,” according to Eskom. “Any correlation to the stage and the number of hours is purely coincidental.”

Did we silently move beyond Stage 6? 


Last Thursday, during the evening peak, Eskom had an energy availability of 23,771MW against a demand of 30,747MW. The power utility then shed 7,072MW from the grid, prompting concerns that we had moved beyond Stage 6 load shedding. 

Read more in Daily Maverick: Clarity blackouts — is Eskom keeping SA in the dark about Stage 8 load shedding? 

However, speaking to Daily Maverick on Sunday, Eskom interim spokesperson Daphne Mokwena said: “It is not true that we have implemented Stage 8 load shedding. On the day in question, Eskom load shed at Stage 6, 5,719MW, and also called for Stage 4 load curtailment, 1,353MW, from participating customers who responded by reducing their own load.”

What is load curtailment? 


Load curtailment is when — on instruction from Eskom — large industrial customers reduce their electricity consumption to balance the system.  

“Importantly, load curtailment is not rotated but remains implemented for the full duration of the event. For example, when load curtailment is implemented for 36 hours, the customers are required to reduce their demand continuously for the full 36 hours,” Eskom explained. DM

Comments (4)

michele35 Sep 14, 2023, 06:16 PM

Someone needs to read NRS -048-9 and Table 2 Stage 6 = reduction of 30%. 30% of 24 hrs= app 6 hrs in blocks of app 6 GWhrs. What is coincidental is that the Mantashe's much maligned and unreliable renewables are saving ESKOM at least 2 loas shedding stages and a pile of cash.

roelf.pretorius Apr 20, 2023, 07:40 PM

It is time that both Eskom & the ANC government (and any other government after them) realise that we as the public want reliable power. If Eskom can't give it to us, then we must have the right to get our power from elsewhere. The program that the President announced, namely that anyone can purchase power from private producers without being registered, needs to be implemented without delay. I hear that it has not been done; then those who are not doing their jobs must be acted against. And even if this happens now, the ANC must not expect our vote in 2024; they have cheated us once too many.

Richard Baker Apr 20, 2023, 04:53 PM

Interesting but only useful if the author would put 1000/2000/3000... Mw into context-for example the size of a town or an industrial or mining area and the requirements of each. Otherwise it is meaningless to the lay reader except for the direct effect those cascading levels have. But for most DM readers those are most likely at superficial home or office inconvenience level with solar panels/inverters/solar geysers, etc. installed already. The most devastating and real-world effects (operational/financial) are at small/medium company/relatively high power intensity levels such as factories, foundries, plastic moulders, township operations and the like. Those 50 widgets below won't even cover the standing costs of a business which will collapse very soon and will be substituted from China with permanent loss of local jobs. Also 1 coal unit at the mid-life (not ageing) stations such as Duvha is 600Mw/at Medupi 800Mw-each with 6 units (3600Mw/4800Mw). Do the maths to calculate how many 50(wind)/100/150 Mw solar plants will be required to replace those and the appetite for investors if their sole customer is Eskom or the government. They are also remote from the regions that consume the power and there is a massive cost to build the transmission back-bone. Plus the high-intensity users (smelters, mines, etc.) need mass base-power and there are big consumers whose power must be uninterruptible. There's a very long way to go!

Trevor Jones Apr 20, 2023, 08:45 AM

solar farms? One thing SA is not short of is sunlight. Much of the country is unsuitable for farming, so why not cover it in solar panels? Add universal national service of a year to keep the panels dust and dirt free. too complex? Hmmmmmm

Viv Hart Apr 20, 2023, 10:00 AM

I saw an article about a town in Free State, which can be powered completely by their solar farm, having to fight ESKOM to get themselves off the grid, ESKOM says that they don't have the right to do so!