South Africa’s business owners fume as power cuts hit profits

JOHANNESBURG, July 18 — South Africans’ annoyance at power cuts has given way to worry, with business owners complaining that the prolonged energy crisis for which no end is in sight is eating into profits and hobbling economic activity.

This month, the country has endured almost two weeks of stage-6 load shedding, which entails multiple power cuts a day, each lasting between two and four hours. The impact on jobs is particularly worrying in a country grappling with 34.5 per cent unemployment in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, he said.

“We have to use every available means and remove every regulatory obstacle to bring extra electricity onto the grid as soon as possible,” Ramaphosa said.Energy experts and even debt-ridden Eskom have called for rapid government investment in renewables, particularly solar, as the best option to quickly boost energy production.In May, Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe told parliament that while renewables are slated for procurement, gas, coal and nuclear projects are also in the pipeline.

Source: News Formal (newsformal.com)

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