Pretoria:The nation has achieved a significant milestone with over 500 consecutive days without load shedding, thanks to improved fleet performance, increased generation capacity, and reduced reliance on emergency resources, Eskom announced.

According to South African Government News Agency, South Africa marked 504 days without load shedding since May 16, 2025. This achievement highlights progress in restoring energy reliability and supporting the country's economic growth.

The Energy Availability Factor (EAF) has reached 68.11% year-to-date, emphasizing the improvements in energy security. Eskom noted a significant reduction in diesel expenditure, down by 80.49% year-on-year, and a marked decrease in unplanned outages.

In the past week, electricity demand increased by 1,000MW due to overcast weather impacting solar output. Eskom's generation fleet and customer-owned solar installations played a crucial role in meeting this demand.

Eskom has returned approximately 2,943MW of generation capacity to service, and compared to three years ago, has improved its EAF by 12.76 percentage points. This reflects progress in enhancing generation reliability and energy security.

Between April 1 and October 1, 2026, diesel expenditure dropped by R4.79 billion compared to the previous year. The Open Cycle Gas Turbines load factor also decreased significantly, indicating improved plant performance and additional generation capacity.

Eskom is also advancing its Load Reduction Eradication Programme, aiming to eliminate load reduction by March 2027. Seven provinces are now free from load reduction, and 1.5 million customers have been restored to normal supply.

However, illegal connections and meter tampering continue to pose challenges in certain areas. Eskom is implementing targeted load reduction measures in high-risk areas to protect both communities and the electricity network.

The power utility plans to announce the power system status and Summer Outlook in the coming weeks.