Eskom operates 14 coal-fired power plants, which generate approximately 80% of the country’s electricity. South Africa is heavily reliant on coal for energy, but one of the country’s major issues is frequent power outages. So, how can it reduce its use of fossil fuels and transition to greener sources while increasing its electricity supply?
The state-owned power company Eskom highlighted the vulnerability of South Africa’s national electricity grid in a single tweet one morning last month.”Stage four loadshedding was implemented at 05:30 due to breakdowns of five generators at five power stations overnight,” the newsflash stated, before many people had even had a chance to eat breakfast.
Despite having the most developed economy in Africa, the country has been experiencing load-shedding, or an organized series of rolling blackouts, for the past 15 years. However, this outage felt different.