Stage 2 load-shedding is being implemented from 9am to 11pm on Friday, Eskom said.

“Load-shedding will be required all day to cater for further trips and to create capacity to replenish water reserves for our pumped storage schemes,” the embattled utility said in a statement.

Eskom said it would continue using diesel for their open gas turbines and water at pumped storage schemes to supplement capacity.

It was still unclear whether there would be load-shedding over the weekend, but Eskom  said that the generating plants performed at low levels of reliability.

“Any unexpected shift, such as an increase in unplanned breakdowns, could result in a change in load-shedding stage at short notice.

“We will keep South Africans informed about the status of the electricity system and our recovery efforts throughout this period.”