An explosion at an Eskom power station injured nine employees, one critically, but the accident will not affect the suspension of load-shedding, the power utility says.
A transformer exploded at the Matla power station in Mpumalanga on Thursday afternoon at about 5pm, which affected unit 6.
Unit 5 was taken offline to ensure the safety of employees and contractors on site, Eskom spokesperson Daphne Mokwena said.
The technical team were on site assessing the situation throughout the night and into Friday.
“The suspension of load-shedding remains unchanged,” Mokwena said.
Load-shedding has been suspended for 262 consecutive days since March 26. The power utility said this was due to the success of comprehensive structural improvements in the coal-fired fleet.
Mokwena said this month Eskom started to gradually increase its planned maintenance activities as many industries were shutting down for the festive season.
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