Eskom has confirmed that Unit 3 at the Kusile coal-fired power station is currently supplying 720 MW to the electricity grid using a temporary flue that bypasses the flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) pollution control system.

Unit 3 was restarted on September 30, just short of a year after it, as well as units one and two, became inoperable on October 23, 2022, following a slurry build-up in the Unit 1 flue, leading to its collapse and damaging the other two flues in the west chimney they share.

Before the units could resume production, Eskom sought and received a postponement to Kusile’s compliance with minimum emission standards regarding its sulphur dioxide emissions.

During an update on the Energy Action Plan, Eskom’s Eric Shunmagum expressed satisfaction with the unit’s stable performance since resuming production. He expressed confidence that the schedule for returning the other two units to service would be met. These units would be reintroduced in stages, with Unit 1 officially due to return on October 30 and Unit 2 on November 30.

“We are definitely on track,” Shunmagum said. “Unit 1 is now ready in terms of the construction programme [and] the team is busy with the actual commissioning.”

He also reported that Unit 5, damaged by a fire ahead of commissioning, was being prepared for synchronisation to the grid towards the end of December.

The introduction of the four Kusile units, along with the ongoing operation of four units at Tutuka, where only a single unit had been operational for much of the year, is critical as Eskom enters its high-maintenance summer period.

Planned maintenance is scheduled to peak at about 7,000 MW between mid-December and mid-January, coinciding with South Africa’s low-demand holiday period.

Eskom recently indicated that if unplanned breakdowns could be maintained below 14,500 MW, load shedding was not expected to rise above Stage 4 this summer.

Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa reiterated during the briefing that “we are turning the corner” with regard to load shedding, despite 2023 being South Africa’s worst-ever year for power cuts.