Load shedding: South Africa needs urgent implementation of electricity sector reforms
18 October 2019
Agri SA is deeply concerned by the negative impact that load shedding can have on the primary agricultural sector, the food value chain and the South African economy.
“Eskom has implemented Stage 2 load shedding from Wednesday, catching the South African economy off guard,” says Nicol Jansen, Agri SA Chairman: Economics and Trade Centre of Excellence. “More advanced warning could have made a big difference for farmers and businesses to adjust their planning accordingly.”
Load shedding has an impact on irrigation-reliant and energy-intensive industries like the horticulture, dairy, poultry, grains and agro-processing industry. Irrigation, irrigation scheduling, the application of fertilizer, processing and shipment are all negatively affected by the unplanned load shedding disruptions. Over 25% of the country’s food is produced by irrigation-reliant and energy-intensive industries.
“The burden of load shedding is unacceptable. We need our economy to grow and uplift all South Africans. The unreliability of electricity supply is a major constraint on our economy and the outlook for economic growth. In addition to rising electricity tariffs, the occurrence of load shedding disrupts business activity and is accompanied by direct and indirect costs.”