A unit at South Africa’s sole nuclear power facility unexpectedly tripped, taking the whole facility offline and further stretching supply to the nation’s already-constrained grid.

To its credit, loadshedding lasted only until the end of the week, decreasing in severity until it was suspended entirely. However fears that loadshedding may return this week have been stoked again by Eskom announcing that its Koeberg Unit 2 has tripped.

A unit at Eskom's Koeberg nuclear power plant was shut down after experiencing an unplanned, non-technical trip.

Eskom warned although the loss of the 930MW unit did not necessitate load-shedding, generation capacity remained constrained.

Koeberg Unit 2 inadvertently tripped during the execution of work on Unit 1, which is currently offline for work to be conducted as part of its Long-Term Operation (LTO) program. Unit 2 was safely shut down in accordance with its protection protocols, ensuring continued stability and security.

Eskom confirmed that both units of the Koeberg Nuclear Power Station, Unit 1 and Unit 2, are offline after Unit 2 tripped on Sunday.

South African power utility Eskom has announced that one of the units at its Koeberg nuclear power plant has been shut down. The shutdown occurred following an unplanned, non-technical trip while the plant was operating at full capacity. The trip took place during maintenance work on the plant’s Unit 1, which is currently offline.

Koeberg Unit 2 inadvertently tripped during the execution of work on Unit 1, which is currently offline for work to be conducted as part of its Long-Term Operation (LTO) program. Unit 2 was safely shut down in accordance with its protection protocols, ensuring continued stability and security.

Eskom says Koeberg Unit 2 is expected to be reconnected to the national power grid within 48 hours following what the power utility deemed an ‘unplanned trip’.