Gatvol South Africans have flooded social media to again vent their frustration at Eskom, this time after the power utility announced stage 5 load-shedding during the opening days of the Fifa World Cup.
Football’s showpiece tournament is watched by more than a billion people, with a recent study claiming six in 10 South Africans plan to tune in, but there will be fewer viewers in Mzansi than expected after Eskom announced stage 5 load-shedding.
The power provider gave SA a brief moment of hope on Sunday morning when it suspended load-shedding and said a new stage would be announced later in the day.
Only a few hours later, and just hours before the World Cup kicked off in Qatar, Eskom announced stage 4 on Sunday, increasing into the new week.
“Stage 5 load-shedding will be implemented during the evenings at 4pm until midnight from Monday to Wednesday. Load-shedding will vary between stage 4 and stage 2 during the day until Wednesday,” it said.
It said erratic stages of load-shedding were caused by an absence of the buffer normally provided by diesel during breakdowns.
The presidency said they were aware of the frustration load-shedding caused but assured the nation work was under way to get the situation at Eskom under control.
“The president has accepted the devastating nature of load-shedding, not only to households but businesses, the economy and jobs. This year we’ve had about 162 days of power cuts, making it the worst year of load-shedding to date, that is accepted. It will take time for Eskom to return the generation unit at Kusile and other power stations to service and for new sources of capacity, including from private generators to come online,” he said.
Such comments were of little comfort to angry football fans who missed the World Cup opening ceremony and game and will miss several matches over the next few days.
‘Stage 5 during the World Cup has to be their biggest crime yet’ — Eskom roasted over latest load-shedding
Image: ESA ALEXANDER
Gatvol South Africans have flooded social media to again vent their frustration at Eskom, this time after the power utility announced stage 5 load-shedding during the opening days of the Fifa World Cup.
Football’s showpiece tournament is watched by more than a billion people, with a recent study claiming six in 10 South Africans plan to tune in, but there will be fewer viewers in Mzansi than expected after Eskom announced stage 5 load-shedding.
The power provider gave SA a brief moment of hope on Sunday morning when it suspended load-shedding and said a new stage would be announced later in the day.
Only a few hours later, and just hours before the World Cup kicked off in Qatar, Eskom announced stage 4 on Sunday, increasing into the new week.
“Stage 5 load-shedding will be implemented during the evenings at 4pm until midnight from Monday to Wednesday. Load-shedding will vary between stage 4 and stage 2 during the day until Wednesday,” it said.
It said erratic stages of load-shedding were caused by an absence of the buffer normally provided by diesel during breakdowns.
The presidency said they were aware of the frustration load-shedding caused but assured the nation work was under way to get the situation at Eskom under control.
“The president has accepted the devastating nature of load-shedding, not only to households but businesses, the economy and jobs. This year we’ve had about 162 days of power cuts, making it the worst year of load-shedding to date, that is accepted. It will take time for Eskom to return the generation unit at Kusile and other power stations to service and for new sources of capacity, including from private generators to come online,” he said.
Such comments were of little comfort to angry football fans who missed the World Cup opening ceremony and game and will miss several matches over the next few days.
READ MORE:
Stage 4 load-shedding to be implemented at 5pm with varying stages during the week
Want to watch the Fifa World Cup on TV? Here’s where and how much it will cost
Work under way to improve the situation at Eskom: presidency
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