Star 2023-02-21

Load shedding ramped up to Level 6 until tomorrow as the crippling energy crisis in the country worsens ESKOM has started updating the South African grid system operation code to make allowances for higher levels of power cuts after ramping up load shedding to Stage 6 as the energy crisis worsened. This comes after the struggling power utility warned of a possibility of further changes on the stages of load shedding at short notice given the high number of breakdowns. However, Eskom yesterday downplayed fears that it could ramp up load shedding to an unprecedented Stage 8, at least not for now, as some gener- ating units were expected to come back online. Eskom’s general manager in the Systems Operator’s office, Isabel Fick, yesterday said they had begun putting contingency…

ANGLO American Platinum (Amplats), the world’s biggest platinum producer, said yesterday that the supply and demand balances of the three main platinum group metals (PGMs) were likely to be in small deficits in 2023. The Anglo American majority- owned group said in its 2022 results released yesterday that platinum’s underlying surplus had fallen in recent years, as supply had underperformed, while autocatalyst demand had improved. “In 2023, whether it is in surplus or deficit would depend on the direction of investment demand; a return to more historically normal investor inflows would mean it will be in a small deficit,” it said. “Palladium is set to see surpluses in the next few years, but in 2023 weak mine supply and robust automotive demand should keep it a deficit, albeit much smaller…

ESKOM says there has been a signifi- cant increase in damage to vital infrastructure, including breakers and cables, as a result of the frequent disruption to the grid caused by load shedding and that this has added a further burden to its maintenance backlog. Briefing the media yesterday, group executive for distribution Monde Bala said although there had not been a noticeable spike in damage to transformers, there had been “significant increase in other equipment, including breakers and cables“. This comes amid frequent reports of transformer damage in various parts of the country, believed to be the result of power surges after the outages. Eskom also conceded there has been an increase in the number of incidents of fraud and corruption by contractors and its own employees, particularly in Mpumalanga,…

Rapper Nadia Nakia who was dating fellow rapper AKA upon his death finally took to social media to pay tribute to the Fella In Versace hitmaker. The music icon, who was gunned down on Friday, February 10, outside a Durban restaurant, was honoured with a public memorial service at the Sandton Convention Centre on Friday, February 17. The memorial was a celebration of his creative genius and historical contribution to South African hip hop. It was attended by the Megacy, other friends and family. His private funeral took place the following day. Saying her final goodbyes to AKA, Nakai later posted a video on Instagram with a lengthy caption in which she described her grief. The video shows a happy AKA and Nakai showing off their matching tattoos. She wrote:…

ALL Quiet on the Western Front was the big winner at the Baftas. The German language war drama – which stars newcomer Felix Kammerer as an idealistic teenager who signs up to fight in World War I – was nominated for 14 awards at the 76th EE British Academy Film Awards on Sunday and won a total of seven, including Best Film, having sought off competition from The Banshees of Inisherin, Everything Everywhere All At Once, Tár and Elvis. Edward Berger received the Best Director award for his work on the film, while fellow writers Lesley Paterson and Ian Stokell received the Best Adapted Screenplay for their script that is based on the 1929 novel by Erich Maria Remarque and also took home the award for Best Film Not in…

Multi-award-winning rapper Nsikayesizwe David Junior Ngcobo, better known to his fans as Nasty C, is one of the top rappers in the country. He’s always on his A game and is on a mission to break into the US market. Ahead of his E! VIP episode, IOL Entertainment caught up with the popular rapper, who was recently shown love by Chris Brown on Instagram. “I was stoked, not going to lie. It was so random, it was out of nowhere, I was excited.” Well, it’s not every day that R&B legend Brown posts a clip of one of your freestyles on his Instagram Stories. Especially for an artist who wants to make a mark on the global scene. “It gives me all the motivation I need. Because that’s all we…