Eskom has assured that it will keep the lights on this festive season and meet demand.
In a statement, the power utility said the national power system remains stable and consistently meets “demand as Eskom’s generation performance continues to improve”.
“The success of the Generation Recovery Plan, combined with the intensified planned maintenance implemented last year, has strengthened the fleet and enhanced operational resilience.
“These achievements position Eskom to reliably meet peak festive season demand, support economic activity and reinforce energy security for South Africa,” Eskom explained.
The Energy Availability Factor (EAF) stands at some 66.12% – an improvement of 8.43% at the same time last year when the EAF stood at 57.69%.
“Year-to-date, EAF has increased to 63.85%, with the fleet achieving or exceeding the 70% benchmark on 39 occasions. These results demonstrate both recovery and sustained improvement in generation performance, reinforcing energy security and grid stability.
“The improvement in EAF is largely attributable to a continued reduction in unplanned outages, alongside a moderate decline in planned maintenance levels,” the power utility said.
Eskom has gone more than 217 days without implementing load shedding, with only 26 hours of load shedding recorded earlier this financial year.
“To maintain a stable electricity supply, Eskom will bring 4 670MW of generation capacity online ahead of the evening peak [today].
“Eskom published the Summer Outlook on 5 September 2025, covering the period 1 September 2025 to 31 March 2026, which projects no load shedding due to sustained improvements in plant performance from the Generation Recovery Plan,” Eskom said. – SAnews.gov.za
