South Africa’s Minister of Energy, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, proudly announced Eskom’s recent achievement: an Energy Availability Factor (EAF) of 70.78% on May 13, 2024. This success, shared on X (formerly Twitter), marks a significant step towards ending load-shedding.
Ramokgopa commended Eskom’s workforce for their dedication, patriotism, and competence, noting that this EAF milestone hadn’t been reached since August 2021.
Similar praise was given earlier when Eskom hit a 65.5% EAF on May 2, 2024.
Eskom’s strides in reducing Unplanned Capacity Loss Factor (UCLF) were evident in early May, with a notable decrease in unplanned outages by nearly 4,400MW by May 5, 2024. This consistent improvement has been instrumental in lowering UCLF from 11,036MW to 10,474MW week-on-week as of May 12, 2024.
The reduction in unplanned outages has directly contributed to Eskom’s improved EAF, which climbed from 65% on May 1, 2024, to the current 70.78%. This positive trend contrasts with the previous year’s performance, with the Year-to-Date (YTD) EAF at 58.99%, a significant jump from the 53% recorded last year.
Notably, Eskom has sustained a load-shedding-free period for 47 consecutive days, with the latest data showing a sharp drop in UCLF from 30.56% to 25.56% between weeks 17 and 18 of 2024. This drop, alongside a rise in planned maintenance outages (PCLF) from 10.47% to 12.01%, contributed to the increase in EAF to 62.08%.
Energy analyst Chris Yelland highlighted this positive shift, noting that Eskom’s EAF had remained around 30% for the first 17 weeks of the year. Minister Ramokgopa emphasized that this achievement underscores the effectiveness of Eskom’s generation units and emphasizes their commitment to sustaining and enhancing their performance to end load-shedding for good.
Source: MyBroadband
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