Energy expert backs shift to alternative power supply sources, says some power stations just too old

CAPE TOWN - While Eskom has implemented an accelerated maintenance plan, some of its power stations may just be too old.
 
The bulk of the country's power stations are well over 40 years old, except for the Medupi and Kusile stations.

ALSO READ: Eskom says recovery of several of its units progressing well
 
With stage 2 load shedding in full effect, Eskom said the country was not out of the woods yet despite its emergency reserve's improved recovery. 
 
Energy expert, Anton Eberhardt, the chair of the Power Futures Lab Advisory Board at the University of Cape Town (UCT)'s Graduate School of Business, believes this can create problems with power supply capacity.
  
"The oldest ones running are well over 50 years old or their normal design life. So sure, you can do better maintenance, and you can stretch out their life, but this old 'kit' is going to break and it’s a tiny reminder that we cannot rely solely on Eskom."
 
He said the weekend's breakdown wasn't unexpected.

"Some of us who have been tracking the performance of Eskom power generators did notice that towards the end of last week that the diesel 'peaker', an emergency plant, were being run flat-out in the pump storage, so clearly the system was very, very tight."

Eberhardt added that the focus should now shift to alternative power supply sources.

"I think what this says and hopefully what it motivates is that we keep the momentum around power market reform, about opening the market to private sector investment so that we have more generators coming on and more choice for consumers."