Eskom recently updated its Twitter feed, stating that no load-shedding is anticipated this week due to the electricity system gradually improving.
However, residents remain concerned about the negative implications of load-shedding.
One of the many concerns that residents have is that they have prolonged power outages. For example, when Eskom has scheduled a power outage from 4pm to 8pm, some areas of Roodepoort will only have their power back at 8:30pm or even 9pm.
According to Ward 84 councillor, Gert Niemand, the Ontdekkers Substation can not tolerate the inrush power after load-shedding when Eskom switches it back on. This situation has forced City Power technicians to cushion the harsh impact of the incoming load by switching off power on a rotational basis until the load stabilises. This is time-consuming but necessary to prevent the situation from deteriorating further. City Power urges customers in Horison, Horison View, Ontdekkers Park, parts of Discovery, Honey Hills and Carenvale to remain patient while it ensures that stable and reliable electricity is restored after load-shedding cycles.
“It is imperative for this exercise to be done as permanent damage to equipment at Ontdekkers Substation may result from uncontrolled inrushing power,” Niemand said.
City Power issued a statement about the matter, saying, “City Power would like to apologise to residents in parts of Roodepoort for prolonged power outages caused by Eskom inrush current when load shedding blackouts are restored.” They also mentioned that the reality is that they inherited infrastructure that was not regularly maintained, with the backlog standing at R170 billion. This means that whenever it rains, and restorations occur after load-shedding, the power system gets weakened and the depots are inundated with power outage reports. Adding to this, whenever there is load-shedding the aging network also takes extreme strain due to the massive load shifting and insurge happening when Eskom cuts and restores the power.
