Image Source: Eskom
Local – More than 1.1 million Eskom customers have been removed from load reduction schedules, with five of South Africa’s nine provinces now free from the practice. The 1 104 225 customers removed to date represent 65.17% of the eradication target set under the utility’s nationwide Load Reduction Eradication Programme.
The milestone follows the elimination of load reduction in Mpumalanga, which joined the Western Cape, Northern Cape, Free State and North West on the list of cleared provinces.
Eskom said 545 feeders had been removed from load reduction nationally, with the remaining areas concentrated in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal. The utility aims to clear seven provinces by October 2026 and to end load reduction across the country by March 2027.
“The elimination of load reduction forms part of Eskom’s broader commitment to transforming electricity service delivery across South Africa,” said Eskom Group Executive for Distribution Junaid Munshi.
Load Reduction Is Not Loadshedding
Load reduction is often confused with loadshedding, but the two are different problems. Loadshedding happens when national generation falls short, and South Africa’s power system has now run for more than 413 consecutive days without it.
Load reduction was introduced as a temporary protection measure in areas where illegal connections, electricity theft, meter tampering and demand growth overloaded local networks.
Eskom said investment in network infrastructure, smart meter installations, the integration of Distributed Energy Resources and expanded Free Basic Electricity support were reducing overloading and the need for load reduction.
“Reaching the milestone of more than one million customers removed from load reduction demonstrates that the programme is delivering tangible results. However, the work is not complete,” said Munshi.
The success of the programme depends on cooperation between the utility, municipalities, government departments, traditional leaders, law enforcement and communities.
Illegal connections, theft, meter tampering and vandalism continue to put pressure on local networks, raising the risk of infrastructure damage and supply interruptions.
