Will our towns and cities be plunged into darkness regularly this winter? Will power outages bring factories to a stand-still? Are we heading for a winter of discontent?  

Towards the end of last year, the Western Cape was thrown into chaos on several occasions because of power outages. The public were outraged, but have been warned that this could be the pattern throughout the winter. According to some experts, many other parts of the country also face the prospect of long, cold nights without power.  

This Tuesday Special Assignment talks to experts in the field to find out what the consequences of outages are likely to be. There have already been reports that some entrepreneurs have pulled out of investing in South Africa, because they cannot be assured of regular supplies.

Power has major implications for a country’s economy. South Africa needs to grow at six percent if we are to make a dent in unemployment. Experts tell us that electricity growth should at least match, or ideally double that. Eskom’s planned increases seem to be way below this figure, something that alarms many independent engineers and business forecasters. 

We talk to the labour unions, engineers and Eskom to plot the way forward. We try to establish where things have gone wrong or to what extent we are still on track. Eskom assures us that we will have a warm winter but that supplies will be tight. Independent experts and the unions tell us to prepare for a winter of discontent in many parts of the country, but especially in the Western Cape. Who are we to believe? 

This investigation is directed by Msizi Khuhlane and was filmed by Egon Hierse and Thulo Monare.

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