Eskom escalates to stage 4 on Friday, SABC, others take financial hit

National power utility Eskom has implemented Stage 4 load shedding on Friday morning due to a breakdown in generation capacity.

Eskom said stage 4 was implemented at 05:26 until further notice as breakdowns amount to 17 056MW of generation capacity, low pumped storage dam levels and lack of diesel.

These are the reasons for the shift upwards in load shedding stages.

The power utility has been on a stage 2 load-shedding cycle this week, with stage 3 implemented later in the day.

At the rate of power outages, residents may have a dark festive season a challenge even the business sector cannot afford.

The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) announced it’s new product offering to have their content accessible for streaming.

The SABC announced their SABC plus platform as their answer to digital competitors.

The SABC’s streaming app plans to provide 19 radio stations and three free to air television channels namely SABC 1, SABC 2, SABC 3 including SABC sports and their 24 hour news channel.

While the product offering shows progress into a new way of producing content for viewers, the SABC has also felt the pinch of load shedding.

The SABC’s traditional modes of broadcasting which rely on dishes and TV’s have been impacted negatively by the recurring power outages.

This translates into direct financial losses  for the national broadcaster due to average minute ratings largely impacted.

The average minute ratings are effectively used as leverage to trade in airtime/ad space with advertisers.

The City of Johannesburg has also felt the pinch of power outages.

The city has announced it’s intent to start processes to step away from Eskom to secure reliable, affordable energy due to Eskom’s power cuts which result in thousands in losses and damages.

Also read: WATCH: SABC launches SABC Plus, new streaming app platform