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2023 was a record-breaking year for rolling blackouts in South Africa, with more accumulated outage hours than all the combined blackout hours between 2014 and 2022. The North West province experienced many of these blackouts, so residents wonder what they should expect with load-reduction or load-shedding for 2024 and beyond.
If you’re curious about load-reduction schedules for North West province, South Africa, here’s what you need to know about current notices, outage schedules, and understanding Eskom’s timetables.
Eskom Load Reduction Notice
Eskom has confirmed that load reduction is still in place for 2024. Load shedding was suspended to protect people from electricity theft, but load reduction has resumed to help the country avoid grid overload. Eskom’s leadership has stated that load reduction is a last-resort strategy implemented for the shortest periods possible since all other options have been used and exhausted.
Considering that 94% of overloaded transformers are the result of electricity theft, these load reduction measures are necessary. A damaged transformer can create long-lasting outages of up to six months, so minimal electricity reduction schedules can mitigate this possibility. While load shedding is implemented in stages based on demand, load reduction only reduces electricity demand in certain areas to address issues like electricity theft.
Electricity theft comes in many forms, including illegal connections, meter tampering, and vandalism. Moving an Eskom meter without proper authorisation is unsafe, illegal, and considered energy vandalism. If you need to relocate your meter, you can contact Eskom directly or any of their approved contractors. Note that all meters are Eskom’s property, so they must be the ones to adjust their location.
How to Find Your Eskom Power Outage Schedule
Follow these steps to find out when the power will go out according to Eskom’s load-shedding schedule.
- Identify the stage of load shedding.
- Select your municipality from the list of options.
- Then, select your suburb if it applies.
- The table you see will now show the schedule for the current month and day, with the date highlighted in red. The shaded areas of the schedule indicate that load shedding was active during that time.
Please note, however, that load shedding is currently suspended, so these timetables are not applicable until Eskom officially announces that load shedding is back on.
Eskom Load Shedding Timetable
The load-shedding timetable is a spreadsheet Eskom uses to help residents understand when they’ll experience short blackouts due to scheduled cycles across the region. The monthly timetable reflects all months of the year but only goes into effect after Eskom officially announces that they’re utilising this strategy.
For example, if your area is scheduled for electricity shedding from 16:00 to 20:00, but Eskom only declares load shedding starting at 18:00, your electricity shed will only occur from 18:00 to 20:00.
For load reduction, Eskom has implemented periods of reduced electricity between 5:00-9:00 and 17:00-20:00, when energy demand and electricity theft are typically the highest and transformers are at their highest risk of overload.
You can find specific details on your area’s electricity reduction schedule through the Eskom website. These tables are much more straightforward and tell you exactly when the load will be reduced daily.
Conserve Power In Light of Load Reduction
Load reduction limits the amount of electricity you can access during these times, so finding ways to conserve power and reduce your energy needs can help you comfortably get through periods of energy reduction.
A great strategy is integrating solar generators in your home as a backup for when grid power is reduced. This could include EcoFlow Solar Generators, such as the entry-level backup EcoFlow DELTA 2 + 400W Solar Panel or the robust EcoFlow DELTA Pro + 400W Solar Panel, which can power your entire home.
If you’re not interested in solar energy but still want a backup power option that you can plug into during electricity reduction periods, you can charge up an EcoFlow Portable Power Station with your AC outlets when power is on as usual and use this stored energy when electricity gets reduced.
Frequently Asked Questions
There is no currently active load-shedding schedule today in North West, South Africa, as Eskom has kept it suspended. There is, however, load reduction, which takes place between 5:00-9:00 and 17:00-20:00 daily during the highest periods of energy use and electricity theft.
To check the load reduction schedule, visit Eskom’s website or contact them directly for details on when you can expect reduced power to your home. They have specific schedules for affected areas, such as Western Cape and Eastern Cape, Gauteng, Kwa-Zulu Natal, and Free State.
Final Thoughts
Load reduction can be frustrating for North West residents in South Africa. It means you’ll have to make do with reduced electricity access in your home for a few hours each day. But it doesn’t have to mean you’re entirely without the power you need.
With help from EcoFlow’s Solar Generators, you can keep your devices and appliances running using solar energy even when the grid is down. Then, you’ll never have to worry about your electricity supply, even in the tightest situations.