South Africa enters winter without Koeberg’s Unit 1.

It was taken offline last year for maintenance.

Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa visited the site today and confirmed that extending the nuclear power station’s life by another 20 years is running 45 days behind schedule.

Unit 1 has a capacity of 920 MW, which is equivalent to one stage of load shedding.

Once Unit 1 is brought back, Unit 2 will be taken offline.

This unit also has a capacity of 920 MW.

Minister Ramokgopa says that there will be a mandatory break for employees of six weeks before beginning the same operation on Unit 2, which is now scheduled for November.

Koeberg’s operating licence expires in July 2024.

Eskom is seeking a new licence for the extension of life from the National Nuclear Regulator.