Stage 2 rotational load-shedding will kick in at 9pm on Wednesday and continue until 8am on Thursday.

Eskom said in a power update late on Wednesday afternoon that the cuts were being enforced due to the “loss of additional generation capacity”, which forced it to use emergency reserves extensively during the day to supplement capacity.

“These now need to be replenished to meet tomorrow’s electricity demand.”

It was the same scenario when the power utility announced late on Tuesday that there would be overnight load-shedding.

“In order to minimise the impact of the load-shedding on South Africans, load-shedding is scheduled at night to maximise electricity availability during the working day,”  said Eskom.

“The power system remains vulnerable and unpredictable, with breakdowns sitting at 13,543MW as at 4.30pm.

“In the event that we lose other generation units or are unable to bring back those that were out for maintenance, load-shedding may be implemented during the day. We will keep customers informed of the status of the power system.”