News from Eskom - Power Supply Remains Tight

Eskom has indicated that South Africa`s power supply remains under threat with the Medupi power station now understood to come on line only during the last quarter of 2013. Medupi was planned to begin operating in the first quarter of next year.

 The position is compounded by the utility running out of funds to sustain its power buy-back arrangements with enterprises in mining and industry that are paid to cease operations. Shaun Nel, the programme manager for the Energy Intensive User`s Group said that Eskom`s power buy-back programme could only be sustained until June or July latest..

The onset of winter will also have a dramatic impact on power consumption patterns. Reuters reported that during one of the colder nights last week after people returned from work and started using heating and cooking appliances, the consumption peaked against a demand forecast of 33 692 MW leaving a narrow buffer of a 1 000 MW.

Eskom currently owns and operates 27 mainly coal-fired power stations, the Koeberg nuclear power station in the Western Cape and the Ingula hydro-electric plant in KwaZulu-Natal, The net maximum capacity output was measured at 41 194 MW on 31 March 2011. At that time it was serving 2 587industrial customers, 1 110 miners, 49 090 commercial operations, 84 393 agricultural operations and more than 4.5 million residential customers.

Incentive to Help Residential Units Save 80mw During Peak Periods

Eskom announced that during the next few weeks it will be awarding contracts to the value of R500 million to contractors to effect electrical energy saving devices in residential units country-wide. The value of the work will be restricted to R2000 per residential unit and will be free to the owner. Eskom will be responsible for paying for the equipment used and work done. A trial programme has been in place since February which has resulted in an approximate savings of 80MW during peak consumption periods.

The contractors will on request of home owners install timers for electric geysers, water and energy saving shower heads and compact fluorescent (CFL) lamps to replace incandescent lamps where this was not already done. The aim is to reduce power demand during peak periods and for that reason the timers fitted to geysers will be set that no power will be used between 06:000 and 08:00 and in the evenings. Home owners will be unable to adjust the settings once set. Some of the contractors appointed will also fit timing devices to swimming pool pumps but these may be subject to some sort of tariff which may vary from area to area.

It is estimated that CFLs and energy saving shower heads will reduce power consumption by 85% and 20% respectively. Four contractors --- Ellies Renewable Energy, LDM (Letamik International), Karebo and 14SBF--- were contracted to deliver and install a range of energy efficient devices in residential homes.

Pieter Rautenbach