- Energy availability improves sharply year on year, supporting continued system stability.
- Unplanned outages fall to lowest levels since 2019, cutting costs and strengthening resilience.
- Progress continues on ending load reduction, with nearly 96,000 customers already benefiting.
Eskom says South Africa’s power system remains stable and continues to meet electricity demand, supported by sustained improvements in generation performance despite heavy rainfall during December. The utility attributes the progress to its Generation Recovery Plan and an intensive planned maintenance programme implemented over the past financial year.
According to Eskom, the Energy Availability Factor reached 69.14 percent in December 2025, a year on year improvement of 12.57 percentage points from 56.57 percent recorded in December 2024. On a year to date basis, EAF increased to 64.35 percent, with the generation fleet meeting or exceeding the 70 percent benchmark on 49 occasions. Eskom says this performance reinforces confidence in the stability and security of the national electricity supply.
The utility notes that the improvement is largely driven by a reduction in unplanned outages, reflecting disciplined maintenance execution and the impact of the Generation Recovery Plan. However, energy analyst Chris Yelland has publicly questioned the unusually high EAF data reported in the final weeks of 2025, suggesting the figures are out of line with historical trends.
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Official reports cite a month-to-date EAF of 66.12% as of December 19, and a final December average of 69.1%.
“The EAF data point for Week 52, 2025, is so atypical and out of line with all previous years that one cannot but suspect that activities are being done or not done in order to present a high EAF by the end of 2025,” Yelland posted on X.
Link to Eskom’s real time performance data portal HEREÂ
Data source: Eskom. Image credit: Chris Yelland. Chris is an energy analyst, consultant, electrical engineer, public speaker, writer and MD at EE Business Intelligence (Pty) Ltd. Follow Chris on X – @chrisyelland
Between 26 December 2025 and 1 January 2026, average unplanned outages declined to 6,822 MW, less than half the 12,328 MW recorded during the same period last year. Eskom says this represents an improvement of 5,506 MW. Current unplanned outages stand at 6,662 MW, a level last seen in 2019, which the utility describes as a meaningful and sustained improvement in generation performance.
Over the same period, the Unplanned Capacity Loss Factor declined to 14.06 percent, compared with 26.12 percent a year earlier. Planned maintenance averaged 9.41 percent, down from 19.08 percent in the previous financial year, following what Eskom describes as an above normal maintenance programme aimed at restoring fleet reliability.
Improved plant performance has significantly reduced Eskom’s reliance on diesel fired generation. For the second consecutive week, no diesel was used, resulting in zero expenditure over the past two weeks. Diesel spending is now R2.511 billion lower than at the same point last year. Eskom added that 13,675 MW of capacity is currently in cold reserve due to excess capacity and lower holiday season demand.
South Africa has now experienced 231 consecutive days without supply interruptions, with only 26 hours of loadshedding recorded in April and May during the current financial year. Eskom’s Summer Outlook, published in September 2025, projects no loadshedding through to the end of March 2026, subject to continued improvements in plant performance.
Looking ahead, Eskom plans to bring 5,585 MW of generation capacity online ahead of the evening peak on Monday, 5 January 2026. Evening peak demand is forecast at 19,545 MW, supported by 23,894 MW of available capacity.
On the distribution side, Eskom reported a sharp increase in network faults during the festive season due to adverse weather, with incidents rising by around 40 percent compared to last year. While most supply has been restored, some communities remain without electricity because of severe infrastructure damage. Illegal connections and meter tampering continue to pose safety and operational risks, prompting Eskom to maintain load reduction in high risk areas as a temporary measure.
As part of a longer term solution, Eskom is implementing a phased programme to eliminate load reduction by 2027. The programme targets 971 feeders and aims to benefit around 1.69 million customers through smart meters, distributed energy resources and expanded Free Basic Electricity support.
To date, 73,523 smart meters have been installed on affected feeders, mainly in Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Limpopo and KwaZulu Natal. Eskom plans to install more than 577,000 meters by March 2026, with full completion expected in 2027.
The number of feeders removed from load reduction has increased to 70 nationwide, representing 26 percent of the March 2026 target. As a result, an estimated 95,989 customers are no longer affected during peak periods. Eskom says efforts are continuing to accelerate progress in order to meet both provincial and national targets.
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
