Staff Reporter
Eskom will reduce the amount of electricity it delivers to at least three districts in the Free State starting Thursday as it tries to limit power overloads in areas where illegal connections are rife.
In a statement, the national power utility said it will be implementing load reduction in Thabo Mofutsanyana, Lejweleputswa and Fezile Dabi districts during the morning peak period of 6am-9am.
“Overloading on the Eskom electrical network results in damage to electricity infrastructure through explosions of transformers and mini-substations and prolonged outages,” Eskom said.
Lejweleputswa is set to be the first area to be affected as the power load will be reduced in Thabong East tomorrow.
Some of the places to be affected in that district include Sunrise View, Total Garage, N1 Section and the Momentum Complex area.
Eskom said the move is aimed at avoiding overloading its network and protecting infrastructure and human life particularly in high-density areas prone to network overloading.
The cash-strapped company – owed billions of rands by mostly municipalities and some private customers across the country – said it cannot afford to continue replacing transformers and is therefore duty-bound to protect its equipment, particularly in areas where overloading poses a continuous threat to the expensive infrastructure.
“In an endeavour to protect the network and to ensure the safety of the public, Eskom will switch off overloaded networks during peak periods,” Eskom said.
“After the peak period or when it is safe to do so, power will be switched back.
“The practice of load reduction is in line with the electricity operating code.”
Load reduction is already being implemented elsewhere including Soweto and Alexandra in Gauteng where Eskom says electricity theft is very high.
Unlike load shedding, load reduction is only implemented in areas where there is a high rate of electricity theft in a bid to contain overloading due to illegal connections.