- Eskom says South Africa’s power system remains stable and well positioned to meet electricity demand over the festive season.
According to the utility, month on month gains reflect steady progress under the Generation Recovery Plan and the strengthening of the generation fleet. Eskom said these improvements underpin a more secure electricity outlook as demand typically softens during the holiday period.
The Energy Availability Factor, which measures the proportion of time generation units are available to produce electricity, reached 66.52 percent month to date in December 2025. This represents an increase of 8.33 percentage points compared with the same period last year, when EAF stood at 58.19 percent.
On a year to date basis, EAF has improved to 63.8 percent, with the fleet achieving or exceeding the 70 percent mark on 39 occasions. Eskom said the sustained improvement in availability has contributed directly to greater grid stability and reduced reliance on emergency generation.
Higher plant availability has also enabled a further reduction in the use of diesel fired open cycle gas turbines. Eskom reported that 7 118 MW of capacity is currently on cold reserve due to excess generation capacity.
Diesel expenditure over the past week amounted to just R0.3 million, linked to environmental correlation tests on one open cycle gas turbine unit at Ankerlig to meet statutory compliance requirements. Eskom said the continued minimal use of diesel reflects both operational improvements and meaningful cost savings. Year to date diesel spending remains below budget.
For the period from 5 to 11 December 2025, the average Unplanned Capacity Loss Factor declined to 21.82 percent, down from 25.70 percent over the same period last year. Planned Capacity Loss Factor averaged 10.30 percent, compared with 15.41 percent a year ago, in line with Eskom’s maintenance strategy to improve long term reliability.
Average unplanned outages over the same period fell to 10 505 MW, an improvement of 1 805 MW compared with last year. Eskom said the year on year reduction highlights the growing resilience of the generation fleet.
South Africa has now recorded 210 consecutive days without an interrupted electricity supply, with only 26 hours of loadshedding implemented in April and May during the current financial year.
Looking ahead, Eskom plans to bring 2 960 MW of generation capacity online ahead of the evening peak on Monday, 15 December 2025. Evening peak demand for today is forecast at 22 157 MW, supported by available capacity of 26 707 MW, providing a comfortable supply margin.
The utility’s Summer Outlook, published on 5 September 2025 and covering the period to 31 March 2026, projects no loadshedding, assuming continued improvements in plant performance under the Generation Recovery Plan.
Operational performance highlights
Year to date, the Unplanned Capacity Loss Factor has reduced further to 24.3 percent, remaining below last year’s 24.98 percent. Planned maintenance averaged 5 380 MW, or 11.45 percent of total generation capacity, slightly lower than both the previous week and the comparable period last year.
Between 1 April and 11 December 2025, Eskom generated 1 042.91 GWh from open cycle gas turbine plants at a diesel cost of R6.191 billion. This is lower than the 1 215.09 GWh produced during the same period last year. Eskom noted that diesel consumption has been declining steadily month on month since May 2025, with the December load factor to date at just 0.01 percent, linked to compliance related testing.
The year to date open cycle gas turbine load factor has decreased to 4.99 percent, below the 5.82 percent recorded last year and under Eskom’s internal target.
Progress on ending load reduction
While overall system performance remains strong, Eskom said illegal connections and meter tampering continue to damage infrastructure and pose safety risks. Load reduction is therefore still being applied in selected high risk areas as a temporary measure to protect communities and the network.
Eskom has launched a phased programme to end load reduction by 2027, targeting 971 feeders and benefiting around 1.69 million customers from its total base of 7.2 million customers nationwide. The programme includes the rollout of smart meters, the integration of distributed energy resources and expanded access to Free Basic Electricity.
To date, Eskom has installed and commissioned 64 772 smart meters on feeders affected by load reduction, with more than 90 percent of installations in Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Limpopo and KwaZulu Natal. The utility aims to install 577 347 meters by March 2026, with full completion expected in 2027. Current progress stands at 11.22 percent.
Eight feeders have so far been removed from load reduction, seven in Limpopo and one in Mpumalanga. This represents 29.17 percent of the Limpopo provincial target and 7.69 percent in Mpumalanga, against a national target of 271 feeders by March 2026.
The removal of these feeders has benefited nearly 25 000 customers, reducing the number of customers still targeted for removal from load reduction to 114 009 in Limpopo and 95 336 in Mpumalanga by year end. Nationally, more than 552 000 customers remain targeted for removal from load reduction by the end of the financial year.
Registrations for Free Basic Electricity have also increased, rising from 485 000 to 579 360 customers, an increase of 19.46 percent. This represents 27.59 percent of the estimated 2.1 million eligible customers.
Eskom said it continues to invest in technology, infrastructure upgrades and community partnerships to deliver a safer, smarter and more reliable electricity network for South Africa.
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
