Electricity Minister Dr. Kgotsientsho Ramokgopa says delays in maintenance at unit one of Koeberg’s Nuclear Power Station in Cape Town will affect the ability to reduce load shedding for about two months.
He has visited Koeberg and the Ankerlig Open Cycle Gas Turbine plant in Atlantis as part of his countrywide assessments of power stations.
Ramokgopa says they are falling behind schedule at the unit. “Unit one is out of operation. The unit provides about 920 megawatts to the grid. We were hoping that unit one will come back online by the 23rd of July, however unfortunately they can’t meet the target because of unforeseen conditions.”
Minister @Kgosientsho_R addressing the media at Koeberg Power Station. pic.twitter.com/oV9AWwrM7i
— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) March 24, 2023
Koeberg is the country’s only nuclear power station. With its two reactor units, it has the capacity to generate some 1800 megawatts for the national grid. The return of unit one, taken offline for maintenance, refuelling and the replacement of three steam generators, has been delayed.
Engineers at Koeberg say the replacement of the steam generators, of which the first one was removed this week, is taking place while the unit is down for maintenance.
Engineers at Koeberg say the replacement of the steam generators, of which the first one was removed this week, is taking place while the unit is down for maintenance.
Eskom’s Chief Nuclear Officer Keith Featherstone says, “It is part of the process of what we need to do but what we are doing now is not the assurance of getting into a long-term operation. It’s part of the activities we need to do and we are hoping the regulator will see it the same way we do and grant us the license to operate for an extended period.”
Ankerlig power station is one of the country’s gas turbine power plants, with the capacity to produce just over 1300 megawatts.
Underperformance by the country’s coal-powered stations and Koeberg places unintended strain on the open-cycle gas turbine power plants.
[DAY 5- ANKERLIG VISIT]:
This morning, I am visiting the Ankerlig Open-cycle gas turbines (OCGT) facility located in the Western Cape as part of the ongoing visits to the Power Stations.
The second site visit today will be to the Koeberg Nuclear Power station. pic.twitter.com/ZjyFLgZKgN
— Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa (@Kgosientsho_R) March 24, 2023
Ramakgopa says, at the seven power stations he has visited so far, there is nothing to suggest that corruption is the cause of underperformance. He says it’s not anticipated that load shedding will escalate above stage six during peak demand in winter.
