Cold weather drives up electricity demand

SAPA+|Published

Joburg has to refund residents after charging too much for electricity in July. File photo: Matthews Baloyi Joburg has to refund residents after charging too much for electricity in July. File photo: Matthews Baloyi

Johannesburg - The cold snap in Gauteng has caused an increased demand for energy, Eskom said on Monday.

The power utility said the system was expected to be extremely tight over the peak on Monday evening and over the next few days.

Consumers were urged to save 10 percent of their usual electricity usage.

“We urge all South Africans to switch off geysers, electric heaters and any other non-essential appliances during the peak hours from 5pm until 9pm,” it said in a statement.

The capacity available to meet Monday evening's peak demand was 35 780 MW while demand was forecast at 35 717 MW. - Sapa