Load shedding: Could a mobile network blackout be coming?

Both MTN and Vodacom customers have been complaining about the networks online as load shedding continues to impact cell towers.

Sep 21, 2022 - 18:54
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Load shedding: Could a mobile network blackout be coming?

Mobile users are using social media to express their frustrations against their networks, namely MTN and Vodacom.

Mobile networks MTN and Vodacom have a combined 70 million customers

Both networks have been strained due to the ongoing load shedding hitting cell towers and causing disruptions. eNCA reports that between MTN and Vodacom there are 70 million customers.

According to Vodacom, protracted power outages prevent batteries from completely recharging. The company revealed that there’s a possibility of intermittent service in some areas.

Batteries and generators are being used to lessen the impact of load shedding

In the last two years, Vodacom spent over R2 billion on batteries. MTN on the other hand said that it’s deployed more than 2 000 generators. The generators will be used to lessen the impact of higher stages of power cuts.

The company says that the efficacy of batteries is not as high when load shedding goes beyond Stage 4.

Social media users have used their online platforms to express themselves regarding their mobile networks during load shedding. Photo: Anna Nekrashevich / Pexels

Eskom’s worst case scenario: SA could face ‘three-week blackout’

Previously it was reported that Eskom have published details about the post-load shedding process, and what would happen if things like targeted power cuts failed to prevent a major disaster. The firm has revealed that, in the event of grid collapse, South Africa would be left without electricity ‘for weeks’.

The rather gloomy update was published earlier on Tuesday. South Africa’s worst-performing utility has currently got the country at Stage 5 of load shedding, down from a peak of Stage 6 over the weekend. Some, however, suspect that Eskom secretly went even further.

The only planned stages of load shedding that Eskom has never formally declared are Stage 7 and Stage 8. This would create outages of more than 12 hours a day for millions of South Africans. This seems like a nightmare, but unfortunately, this wouldn’t be the worst-case scenario. Read the full story here.