ANC wants 'state of disaster' declared over power crisis

Source: Reuters/Siphiwe Sibeko

The government used the declaration of a national state of disaster to help it respond to the Covid-19 pandemic. Mbalula told reporters on Tuesday that the ANC executive also wanted an energy crisis committee to speed up its work.

President Cyril Ramaphosa cancelled a planned appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos this month because of the power shortages. He is expected to announce new measures to boost power supply when he delivers a state of the nation address on 9 February.

Meanwhile, Eskom said it would implement Stage 5 and Stage 6 load shedding at different periods on Tuesday and Wednesday, citing breakdowns at its power plants.