Electricity use increases

2010-07-01 18:58

Johannesburg - The actual estimated volume of electricity consumed in May this year increased by 4.5% compared to May last year, Statistics SA said on Thursday.

The agency said electricity consumption for the three months ended in May this year increased by 6% compared to the three months that ended May last year.

Electricity consumption, after seasonal adjustment, for the three months ended May this year rose by 1% compared to the three months that ended in February this year.

Statistics SA said the actual estimated production of electricity in May this year increased by nearly 4% compared to May last year.

The estimated production of electricity for the three months that ended in May this year rose by 6% compared to the three months that ended May last year.

Electricity delivered by Eskom to the provinces for the first five months of this year increased by 8% compared to the first five months of last year.

Increases were reported for all the nine provinces ranging from 1.5% for Northern Cape to nearly 19% for Mpumalanga.

The volume of electricity purchased from outside South African borders increased from 5 008 gigawatt-hours in the first five months of last year to 5 162 gigawatt-hours in the first five months of this year, representing an increase of 3% or 154 gigawatt-hours.

According to the agency, the volume of electricity sold to neighbouring countries in the first five months of this year increased by 10.5% or 563 gigawatt-hours compared to the first five months of last year.

- SAPA