Will we loadshed or not?

I’m in several minds about this Eskom thing. There is a part of me that thinks to galvanise action in the SA economy something really big is needed. Otherwise the risk is that we just muddle along trying to keep the lights on forever, ignoring good planning and basic maintenance.

As an individual working from home I don’t like loadshedding – but I have a few back up sources and loadshedding may irritate me but it won’t disrupt my productivity. A blackout of more than a few days would though.

However, I have to appreciate that while there are others in my shoes, there are also those who are not and who need electricity constantly to produce, manufacture, employ, sell (so that we can generate more revenue for infrastructure of course). These are – unlike me – severely impacted by loadshedding. I think we all would be severely implemented by an extended blackout.

Then I have the view that – we have to do this maintenance – have to. It’s just common sense, business sense, even if it means taking some pain now. Eventually of course – we need (to be an economy worth noting) to have a situation where we can maintain and generate at the same time. But right now – it seems we can’t.

And if the cost of diesel Eskom has used is as reported – that just makes absolutely no sense. Keeping the lights on at all costs might be too big a cost.

These are all internal debates floating around in my head. Nice and theoretical for a rainy day think.

But what I am really not appreciating right now is this dreadful state of indecision. Loadshedding looks imminent, but there still seems to be the keep on at all costs mentality – ‘we are not in a crisis’. And this is something I do find debilitating. Surely we need to make a decision – do the maintenance and loadshed and have clear schedules that apply. So that we know where we stand. Because right now there is zero clarity. And a big part of this entire Eskom debacle has been lack of clarity. Loadshedding seems to be a minute to minute implementation – and I can’t see how that helps.

Get Medupi up and running is of course the no brainer – but that is not happening now.

Ultimately the situation shows how very important it is to be truthful to yourself and your clients. I am a client (indirectly of Eskom, directly of SARS) and as a client I need to be well informed so that I can make good decisions. It’s a golden rule that gets shinier each year – and one that Eskom and whoever is running it is just not getting.