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Eskom said a fire at Unit 6 of the Kriel power station would not impact on the utility's current generation capacity, nor would it result in load shedding.
Spokesperson, Daphne Mokoena, said the unit tripped on Sunday following the loss of hydraulic oil to the turbine valves.
She said this was after an oil pipe broke, causing an oil spill on the hot surfaces of the turbine, which triggered a fire.
Mokoena said the results of Eskom’s generation recovery plan, have added more of a “buffer” to the system to manage incidents such as this.
The station’s fire and emergency team responded swiftly to extinguish and contain the fire. Eskom can confirm no personnel were injured, and all other units at the power station remain fully operational.
The standard investigation procedure is now underway to assess the extent of the damage, as well as the time required for repairs and restoration.
Mokoena said the Kriel Power Station Unit 6 contributes 475MW to the power grid. With this unit temporarily offline, total unplanned outages stand at 8 483MW—still 4 517MW below the base case for summer 2024.
Eskom will make a further announcement when the results of this investigation are finalised.
