South Africa’s state-owned electricity provider, Eskom, is experiencing a period of relative stability in its power generation, with breakdowns falling below levels previously indicated in its winter outlook, according to recent reports.
The shift comes as EskomSePush (ESP), the app initially designed to inform users of load-shedding schedules, has pivoted to become a community platform, offering suburb-based chats, outage reports, and local insights. This transition reflects a significant decrease in power outages across the country. in 2025, there were only eight days of power cuts, compared to 68 days in 2024 and 284 days in 2023.
Despite the improvement, ESP’s founders, Herman Maritz and Dan Southwood-Wells, have emphasized that the app’s evolution was not predicated on the absence of outages. “We never set out to build a tool that depends on South Africa suffering,” Maritz explained. The company launched ESP Version 5, restructuring the app around specific suburbs and areas to foster a sense of community and shared information.
Eskom is also offering customers greater control over their accounts through the MyEskom Customer App. The app allows users to check balances, submit meter readings, log and track service requests, and report power loss faults. The app aims to reduce administrative burdens and provide accurate billing, with users able to submit meter readings directly via their mobile devices.
The changes at ESP coincide with adjustments to how Eskom manages load shedding. The company is implementing dynamic adjustments to block rotations, impacting users who rely on fixed load shedding schedules. Details on these adjustments are available through ESP Chats, offering a platform for users to discuss the implications of these changes.
As of December 4, 2025, Eskom has not issued a statement regarding the long-term implications of the reduced load shedding or the future role of ESP in a potentially outage-free environment. The company’s online login portal remains active, providing access to customer account information.
