Eskom Tips Soweto Residents To Brace for Nine Hour Power Outage, Blames Planned Maintenance
- National power producer Eskom has announced that the lights will be out for nine hours for Soweto residents
- Eskom said the outage was due to essential maintenance on its distribution network on Monday, 26 August
- The maintenance comes amid a cracked down on illegal electricity connections in parts of Gauteng
Source: Getty Images
JOHANNESBURG — Dobsonville residents in Soweto, Gauteng, are bracing for an impending nine-hour electricity cut.
Eskom said the marathon outage was slated for Monday, 26 August. Customers of Extension 3 will be without lights from 09:00 until 18:00.
Eskom tips Soweto residents to brace for outage
According to the national power producer, this was due to essential maintenance on its distribution network.
"For the sake of safety, customers should treat all electrical appliances as live at all times during the power supply outage," said the utility.
"Eskom would like to thank [residents] for [their] cooperation and [we] apologise for any inconvenience the maintenance might cause."
The maintenance comes as Eskom and law enforcement recently cracked down on illegal electricity connections in other parts of Gauteng.
The joint operation resulted in about 35 illegal transformers being disconnected in Diepsloot, near Johannesburg.
Eskom lamented the financial and operational implications of the unauthorised practices after recording losses of about R5 billion in the previous financial year.
The utility dissuaded residents from illegal electrical practices, but residents should report illegal connections and other suspicious acts instead.
Electricity Minister ices nuclear procurement plan
In related news, Briefly News reported that Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa previously announced that the government's plan to procure 2,500 megawatts of nuclear energy was temporarily off the table.
The gazette came under legal scrutiny based on non-public participation in the process, among other factors. However, the plan received the backing of the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA).
Despite this, applicants in a court dispute reasoned that the undertaking's non-public nature was tantamount to an unfair process.
Ramokgopa, to address the oversight, said his department was withdrawing the gazette to allow for public participation.
PAY ATTENTION: Follow Briefly News on Twitter and never miss the hottest topics! Find us at @brieflyza!
Source: Briefly News
