South Africa Marks 150 Days Without Powercuts, Boosts Currency

South Africa has gone 150 consecutive days without any planned power outages, the state power utility Eskom said at the weekend.

This milestone marks a dramatic turnaround from over a year ago when South Africa was plagued by persistent and record load shedding (planned powercuts) that disrupted daily life, inflated food prices and eroded investor confidence.

“The recovery plan has not only made Eskom’s power stations more reliable but has also demonstrated enhanced efficiency,” the state-owned power utility said.

The turnaround began with the appointment of Kgosientsho Ramokgopa as the country’s first-ever electricity minister in March 2023, a role created in response to the escalating energy crisis.

Alongside this, the government injected about R250-billion (N23-trillion) into Eskom to stabilise the utility as well as appointing Dan Marokane as its permanent CEO in December.

The rand has responded well to the development after ending 2023 as one of the few emerging market currencies with losses versus the dollar.

Its fortunes have been boosted by the improvement in electricity supply along with a coalition government that’s considered market friendly after the May election.

The currency has gained 3.7% in the year to date and trades at about R17.70/$.