Gauteng communities still living with daily power cuts despite Eskom’s load shedding success

For many South Africans, the past year has felt almost unbelievable.

After years of rolling blackouts, cancelled plans, dead traffic lights and constant Stage 6 anxiety, the country has now gone nearly a full year without national load shedding.

But in many parts of Gauteng, residents say the celebration feels disconnected from reality.

Because while the rest of the country marks 360 consecutive days without load shedding, thousands of households across the province are still losing power almost every day through Eskom’s ongoing load reduction programme.

And for affected communities, the distinction between “load shedding” and “load reduction” means very little when the lights still go off for hours at a time.

What is load reduction and why is it happening?

According to Eskom, load reduction is different from traditional national load shedding.

Instead of reducing pressure on the national grid, load reduction targets specific high-risk communities where electricity infrastructure is under severe strain due to illegal connections, overloaded transformers and ageing networks.

Eskom says the system is designed to protect local infrastructure from collapse.

The utility insists the programme is temporary and linked to infrastructure challenges in affected areas.

Still, many residents argue that “temporary” has started feeling permanent.

Morning power cuts continue across Gauteng

This week, multiple communities across Gauteng remain affected by scheduled outages running from 5am to 9am.

Among the areas impacted are Moroka, Dhlamini, Tsakane, GaRankuwa, Winterveldt, Ivory Park, Kaalfontein, Rabie Ridge and parts of Protea Glen.

Other affected communities include Mapetla, Chiawelo, Protea South, Soshanguve South and Mabopane.

For working-class households already juggling transport costs, school routines and remote work pressures, losing electricity during early morning hours creates major disruptions.

In many homes, parents are preparing children for school in darkness while small businesses lose productive trading hours before the day even properly begins.

On social media, frustration continues to grow, with some Gauteng residents accusing Eskom of creating a “two-tier electricity reality” where some communities enjoy uninterrupted supply while others carry the burden of infrastructure problems.

Evening outages hit families hardest

The evening load reduction window running between 5pm and 10pm has become especially unpopular.

That time slot affects some of the busiest hours of family life: cooking dinner, homework, bathing children and evening study sessions.

Communities including Diepkloof, Orlando East, Diepsloot, Cosmo City, Evaton, Daveyton, Sharpeville and parts of Roodepoort are among those impacted this week.

For township businesses such as spaza shops, salons and food vendors, evening outages often mean lost income during peak trading periods.

Residents in some areas say the repeated cuts are also damaging appliances and creating safety concerns, particularly during winter when sunset arrives earlier and temperatures drop sharply.

Why illegal connections remain a major issue

One of the biggest drivers behind load reduction remains illegal electricity connections.

In several densely populated areas, overloaded transformers and unsafe connections place enormous pressure on local networks.

This issue has become deeply complex in South Africa because it intersects with poverty, unemployment, informal settlements and rising living costs.

In some communities, illegal connections are driven by economic desperation. In others, organised syndicates reportedly profit from unlawful electricity connections.

The result is infrastructure that struggles to cope with demand.

Energy experts have repeatedly warned that unless local distribution systems are upgraded and electricity theft reduced, load reduction programmes may continue even if national generation improves.

Eskom’s national recovery still marks a major turnaround

Despite ongoing frustrations in Gauteng, Eskom’s broader national performance represents one of the utility’s biggest turnarounds in years.

According to Eskom, South Africa has now gone 360 consecutive days without national load shedding since May 2025.

The utility says system availability currently sits near 99%, with no interruptions recorded during the current financial year so far.

That is a dramatic improvement compared to previous years, when Stage 4, Stage 5 and Stage 6 load shedding became regular features of daily life.

Eskom also says the power system recently handled demand spikes nearly 2,000MW higher than expected during colder weather conditions a sign officials believe demonstrates improved operational resilience.

Winter pressure still worries many households

Even with Eskom projecting no national load shedding this winter, many South Africans remain cautious.

Years of electricity instability have left consumers reluctant to fully trust optimistic forecasts.

Online reactions to Eskom’s latest updates have been mixed. Some users praised the utility for stabilising generation, while others argued that load reduction means many communities are still effectively living under another form of load shedding.

The upcoming winter period will likely become the real test of public confidence.

For now, Eskom says additional generation capacity is being brought online to support evening demand peaks.

But in many Gauteng communities still waking up or going to bed in darkness, the national success story around load shedding feels incomplete.

Because for them, the power cuts never really ended.

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