Kusile power station coming back online after catastrophic collapse

Eskom has announced that it has returned Kusile power station’s unit 1 to service, and it is on load.

Eskom stated by saying: “The unit is returned to service a month and a half ahead of the original schedule and brings an additional 800MW into the grid. This is after Kusile Unit 3 was returned to service on 30 September 2023 and consistently delivering 800MW.”

The state-owned power utility revealed that the return of both units signifies that it is on the right path to reducing and ultimately ending load-shedding. Kusile units 1, 2, and 3 were taken offline due to the collapse of a part of the flue duct in late October 2022.

It is said that the faulty emission control systems and human errors led to a cement-like deposit forming in the flue-gas duct of the Kusile power station, causing a part of the chimney-like structure to collapse on the 23rd of October 2022.

Eskom publicly confirmed the failure at the power station near Emalahleni in Mpumalanga on the 2nd of November 2022 — 10 days after it occurred.