Eskom Says Has It the Capacity to Supply 35 000MW Needed to Keep Lights On During Winter, Citizens Relieved

• Eskom says South Africans will not be experiencing loadshedding for the remainder of this current week
• Sikhonathi Mantshantsha, Eskom spokesperson, says the power utility will have enough energy supply during winter despite currently struggling
• South Africans do not believe that Eskom will be able to keep the lights on during winter and believe that we will experience rolling blackouts

JOHANNESBURG - Eskom spokesperson Sikhonathi Mantshantsha has assured South Africans that the power utility is not expecting to implement rolling blackouts this week due to a sufficient energy supply.

This comes after the country experienced Stage 4 loadshedding for several days last week.

Mantshanthsa also stated in an interview with SABC News, that this coming winter, Eskom plans on having enough capacity to keep the lights on.

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"In the peak of winter, Eskom will be able to supply 35 000 megawatts to the country, which generally is sufficient to get rid of loadshedding, but that is only during that period," said Manthantsha.

He explains that Eskom is currently having difficulty producing 30 000 megawatts of electricity and breakdowns on top of the current constraints are what force Eskom to implement power cuts.

Manthantsha added that Eskom's generation issues can only be solved if the generation capacity is increased. Eskom is working in increasing its generation capacity by building new power stations.

Earlier this week, Eskom issued a statement saying that the power utility might be forced to implement rolling blackouts at moment's notice, according to Fin24. The state-owned power utility also asked Mzansi to limit electricity usage to help relieve the national grid.

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South Africans weigh in on Eskom's plan to keep the lights on during winter

@hafeiloda said:

" The same as 'I may have a long life unless I die'. Or ' my car will run smoothly unless it breaks down. I am glad I do not pay my TV licence for this #shit news. But we know Eskom and we know we cannot trust them."

@jhbotes1975 said:

"I expect my car also to run non-stop, unless of course..."

@devilsad021 said:

"The power stations experience frequent breakdowns so there will be loadshedding!"

Cyril Ramaphosa says South Africans owe Eskom's board members full support

Briefly News previously reported that President Cyril Ramaphosa has asked South Africans to give Eskom full support as the state-owned power utility struggles with loadshedding.

Ramaphosa wrote in his weekly newsletter that Eskom's board and staff members have been doing their best to keep our lights on despite facing challenges.

The President stated that in order to help Eskom return to its former glory, it is important to factor in the challenges that Eskom is currently facing which include old coal-power stations, municipalities owing Eskom more than R34billion and the devastation caused by state capture, reports The Citizen.

Source: Briefly News