South Africa fires up diesel turbines to keep power cuts at bay

Eskom has been using diesel-fuelled auxiliary turbines extensively to stave off power cuts in South Africa following delays in restoring some generation capacity. The utility fired up the units after 2 685 megawatts of capacity failed to return to service on September 23 as planned, Eskom said in a reply to questions. “Additionally, higher-than-expected electricity demand driven by cold weather has contributed to this situation,” it said.