Eskom reported on 23 March 2025 that Kusile Power Station’s final unit, Unit 6, had been added to the national grid. This marks a significant step towards completing one of South Africa’s largest infrastructure projects and is a key milestone in Eskom’s strategic aim to add 2 500 MW of new capacity to the grid by March 2025.
Kusile Power Station will contribute a total of 4 800 MW to the national grid once all units are fully operational. Its sister project, Medupi, will see its Unit 4 return 800 MW to the grid by the end of April 2025 – after an extended outage following a generator stator failure – and the completion of the project. Both South Africa’s new build power station projects will then be essentially completed, once Kusile Unit 6 is in commercial operation.
Kusile is also the first power station in South Africa and Africa to implement Wet Flue Gas Desulphurisation (WFGD) technology. This enables the power station to meet stipulated air quality standards and align with global best practices to reduce sulphur dioxide emissions.
Eskom Group Executive for Generation, Bheki Nxumalo noted: “Eskom is at a critical point in returning megawatts to the grid as the system is currently in a constrained state. The addition of Kusile Unit 6 is a testament to the dedication and resilience of Eskom’s employees and contractors. Their commitment has driven us forward despite numerous challenges. As we celebrate this progress, our focus is now on ensuring that Unit 6 achieves commercial operation in the second half of 2025, further strengthening South Africa’s energy security.”
“The addition of Kusile Unit 6 to the grid demonstrates that we are making continuing progress in stabilising and strengthening South Africa’s electricity supply,” said Eskom Group Chief Executive, Dan Marokane. “Meeting the targets we set in the Generation Recovery Plan and our strategic roadmap underscores our determination to deliver new capacity, enhance generation performance, support economic growth, and deliver a more sustainable energy future.
“We reiterate our commitment to ensuring that South Africa is in no way returning to the levels of load shedding that we experienced in 2023. and our focus remains on delivering a more reliable, resilient, and sustainable power system for the country,” Marokane said.
Over the next six months, Unit 6 will undergo extensive testing and optimisation before reaching commercial operation, when its 800 MW capacity will be officially added to the Eskom generation fleet.
Eskom remains committed to implementing the Generation Operational Recovery Plan, strengthening governance, and ‘future-proofing’ the organisation. The objective is to ensure energy security, growth, and long-term sustainability for the benefit of South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa.
For more information visit: www.eskom.co.za