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JULY / AUGUST 2022 ISSUE #11

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INTEREST RATE

GAUTENG ONLINE

MENTAL HEALTH

EVALUATING REFLECT

STARTING LOAD SHEDDING Is a crisis

STATE PRESIDENT CYRIL RAMAPHOSA: THERE IS NO REASON WHY A COUNTRY LIKE OURS – WITH THE SKILLS, CAPABILITIES AND RESOURCES WE HAVE AT OUR DISPOSAL – SHOULD HAVE TO ENDURE A SHORTAGE OF ELECTRICITY.

The on the 11 July 2022 President Cyril Ramaphosa in his weekly newsletter tried to take the country to his confidence amidst the massive rolling black outs in the country over the past two weeks, unprecedented stage six load shedding has threatened to destabilise our ailing economy.

This was caused by the sudden loss of over 18,000 megawatts (MW) of generation capacity

due to unit breakdowns and an unprotected strike by Eskom workers. After more than a decade of electricity shortages, South Africans are right to feel frustrated and angry. At times like this, it can feel like there is no end in sight. Yet, while load shedding appears to worsen, the reality is that we have already taken several important actions to address the shortfall in electricity supply. Our immediate priority is to stabilise the electricity system. As the system recovers and generation capacity is restored, Eskom will be able to reduce load shedding to lower stages.

The agreement reached between Eskom and labour unions will enable critical repairs and return additional units to operation. The transmission line from Cahora Bassa in Mozambique has been restored, adding 600 MW to the grid, and Medupi Unit 6 returned to service on Saturday, adding another 720 MW. Additional units will come back online during the coming week, further easing the current shortfall. At the same time, law enforcement agencies are working hard to tackle sabotage, theft and fraud at Eskom to address the threat that these criminal actions pose to the electricity system.

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