Energy Management and Green Building

ohannesburg - Eskom has ordered a controlled shutdown of unit two of the Koeberg power station following a technical fault, the power supplier said on Tuesday.

"The nuclear reactor side of the unit has not been affected and will be kept in a safe and stable condition," read a statement issued after Monday night's shutdown.

The shutting down procedure, repairs and restarting would take about three weeks to complete. It would increase the vulnerability of the country's power system, particularly in the Western Cape.

"Eskom will do all it can to mitigate the increased vulnerability during this period. This includes increasing the use of the two new open cycle gas turbine stations in the Cape."

Eskom appealed to all South Africans to conserve electricity during this period to reduce the risk of load shedding.