The repairs on Unit One at the Koeberg nuclear power station in the Western Cape were on schedule for completion in the third week of May and refuelling of Unit Two was to commence in the fourth week of May, Eskom said on Friday.
This follows huge blackouts related to problems at the power supplier from November.
On November 11 last year, a mechanical failure at Koeberg resulted in the tripping of transmission lines and transformers.
On November 16 there were further interruptions due to a fire under a power line.
On November 23, there was a controlled shutdown of Koeberg Unit Two and on December 25, Koeberg Unit One had generator problems caused by a loose bolt that had damaged the rotor and the stator.
This had resulted in an extended and unplanned outage. In February there were further blackouts due to high pollution levels, misty conditions and multiple line faults.
At a presentation in Sandton, the company said that the short term measures to minimise the impact on Cape customers included ensuring sustained Koeberg operations, sourcing additional emergency generator capacity and enhancing the physical security of the plant.
A report on the Koeberg failure was presented to Trade and Industry Minister Alec Erwin on Thursday. Erwin has insinuated the possibility of sabotage in the matter.
Eskom planned to spend R84-billion over five years to deliver the required capacity.
Demand was currently close to capacity and the system was ”tight” and would remain so for several years, said Eskom.
There were mechanisms in place to manage supply and demand, especially over the winter months.
For the winter of 2006, the anticipated demand was revised upwards to 35 473MW and the available Eskom capacity was 36 208MW.
Eskom generates 95% of the country’s electricity and more than 50% of the electricity consumed on the African continent. – Sapa