Friday, 10 October 2025: The national power system remains stable, supported by sustained improvements in generation performance, a direct result of the ongoing implementation of the Generation Recovery Plan, which continues to deliver positive outcomes across the fleet and overall energy security for the country.
Month-to-date, the Unplanned Capacity Loss Factor (UCLF) has declined to 22.05%, down from 24.77% during the same period last year—indicating a marked reduction in unplanned outages. The Planned Capacity Loss Factor (PCLF), which refers to planned maintenance, increased to 13.55%, higher than the 13.27% recorded last year. The Energy Availability Factor (EAF) stands at 64.06%, up from 61.63% a year ago, but slightly lower than the previous week due to increased planned outages. This reflects ongoing efforts to stabilise plant performance. These figures demonstrate the ongoing impact of recovery efforts to enhance plant performance, strengthen grid reliability, and support economic growth.
Between 3 and 9 October 2025, Eskom recorded an average of 10 835MW in unplanned outages, a significant improvement compared to 11 920MW during the same period last year. This represents a year-on-year reduction of 1 085MW in breakdowns. This trend demonstrates increasing stability and improved reliability across Eskom’s generation fleet.
From 1 April to 9 October 2025, diesel expenditure remained consistently below budget, reflecting reduced reliance on the diesel-powered Open-Cycle Gas Turbine (OCGT) fleet, with the year-to-date load factor for OCGTs further decreasing to 6.41%. This trend highlights ongoing efficiency improvements, a significant reduction in dependence on diesel generation, and a sustained shift toward more cost-effective primary generation sources.
Ongoing technical improvements under Eskom’s Generation Recovery Plan have ensured a consistent electricity supply for over 97.9% of the time during the current financial year.
The country has gone 147 consecutive days without loadshedding, with only 26 hours recorded between 1 April and 9 October 2025.
To further strengthen grid stability, Eskom is planning to return a total of 3 380MW of generation capacity to service ahead of the evening peak on Monday, 13 October 2025, and throughout the coming week.
Eskom published the Summer Outlook on 5 September 2025, covering the period 1 September 2025 to 31 March 2026, which forecasts no loadshedding due to the structural progress in plant performance as a result of the ongoing implementation of the Generation Recovery Plan.
Key Performance Highlights:
- Year to date, the Unplanned Capacity Loss Factor (UCLF), which reflects the percentage of generation capacity lost due to unplanned outages, further decreased to 25.54%. This represents a week-on-week improvement of approximately 0.1% and remains about 0.1% higher than the 25.46% recorded during the same period last year.
- Year-to-date, planned maintenance has averaged 5 306MW, accounting for 11.31% of total generation capacity. This reflects a slight increase from the previous week and a 0.3% rise compared to the same period last year.
- The year-to-date EAF further increased to 62.66%, however, this figure is slightly below the 63.07% recorded during the same period last year.
- From 1 April to 9 October 2025, Eskom generated 1.009.05GWh from its OCGT plants, with diesel expenditure totalling R5.983 billion—an increase from last year’s 899.38 GWh. In the past week, diesel spending was R27.74 million at a load factor of 0.758%, which is lower than the same period last year (where spending was R97.4 million at a 2.86% load factor), highlighting sustained efficiency improvements and a significant reduction in reliance on diesel generation this year.
- The year-to-date load factor for OCGTs has decreased to 6.41%, reflecting a 0.22% decrease compared to the previous week. This figure remains higher than the 5.72% recorded during the same period last year.
Protect transformers and infrastructure – avoid illegal connections, prevent power failures and load reduction
Despite the overall stability and reliability of Eskom’s power system, load reduction remains necessary in certain high-risk areas to safeguard infrastructure and ensure public safety. This is primarily due to electricity theft through illegal connections and meter tampering, which compromise the integrity of the network. These activities often result in equipment damage, transformer overloads, and, in severe cases, explosions and prolonged outages.
To mitigate these risks, Eskom may implement load reduction by temporarily switching off power in affected areas during peak demand periods.
Eskom, however, is committed to eliminating load reduction within the next 12 to 18 months. This goal will be achieved by addressing 640 000 illegal connections, upgrading infrastructure — including the installation of smart meters — curbing illegal electricity vending, and expanding access to free basic electricity in priority areas.
Customers are urged to avoid illegal connections, purchase electricity only from Eskom-accredited vendors, and regularise their accounts. These measures are essential to preventing load reduction and ensuring safe, reliable, and equitable electricity access for all.
Any illegal activity impacting Eskom’s infrastructure should be reported to the Eskom Crime Line at 0800 112 722 or via WhatsApp on 081 333 3323.
Eskom will provide an update on Friday, 17 October 2025, or promptly communicate any significant changes as soon as they occur.
ENDS
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