LETTER: Could time zone changes help alleviate load-shedding?
Other countries have multiple time zones
12 May 2023 - 13:25
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Coronation Street, the UK’s longest-running TV series, used to have an audience of up to 20-million. Produced by ITV, it had ad breaks that caused significant electrical demand spikes when millions of households turned on their kettles at the same time to make tea.
Sudden surges in electrical demand must be catered for in any grid, normally using spare freewheeling capacity. When Pakistan turned off its power plants overnight earlier this year in a bid to save money, a sudden surge in demand led to total grid collapse. Load-shedding has prevented the same from happening in SA, so far.
In addition to unusual events, all grids must be able to cater for morning and evening peaks, when households make breakfast and dinner. In SA, depending on the time of year, the higher evening peak can be 25% more than lowest demand after 10pm, representing up to 10,000MW.
While residential demand is one component of total electrical demand, heavy industrial users make up the bulk. Their requirements are more constant and predictable, and companies can be asked to turn off machinery or move to private generators in the event of a supply squeeze.
If SA were to introduce different time zones the morning and evening peaks would reduce, being spread over a longer period. SA Standard Time is UTC (co-ordinated universal time) plus two hours. Cape Town should actually be in UTC+1, while Gauteng could stay at UTC+2 and Durban move to UTC+3 (East African Time). The actual dividing points could be taken from the global time map.
Given the cost of diesel to run what were previously our “peaking” power stations, currently about R800m a month, surely it is worth giving time zones a try, especially as the current time regime is arbitrary anyway, having been introduced for the benefit of railway scheduling in 1893?
Other countries have multiple time zones. There are also arbitrary ones, such as Turkey time, New Caledonia time and even Tango time. If a time zone change were to reduce our peak electricity demand by 3,000MW, or 30% of the difference between maximum and lowest demand, it would be the same as adding an additional power station to the grid.
If a time zone change didn’t work, the country could revert back, so what is there to lose?
James Cunningham
Camps Bay
JOIN THE DISCUSSION: Send us an email with your comments to letters@businesslive.co.za. Letters of more than 300 words will be edited for length. Anonymous correspondence will not be published. Writers should include a daytime telephone number.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
LETTER: Could time zone changes help alleviate load-shedding?
Other countries have multiple time zones
Coronation Street, the UK’s longest-running TV series, used to have an audience of up to 20-million. Produced by ITV, it had ad breaks that caused significant electrical demand spikes when millions of households turned on their kettles at the same time to make tea.
Sudden surges in electrical demand must be catered for in any grid, normally using spare freewheeling capacity. When Pakistan turned off its power plants overnight earlier this year in a bid to save money, a sudden surge in demand led to total grid collapse. Load-shedding has prevented the same from happening in SA, so far.
In addition to unusual events, all grids must be able to cater for morning and evening peaks, when households make breakfast and dinner. In SA, depending on the time of year, the higher evening peak can be 25% more than lowest demand after 10pm, representing up to 10,000MW.
While residential demand is one component of total electrical demand, heavy industrial users make up the bulk. Their requirements are more constant and predictable, and companies can be asked to turn off machinery or move to private generators in the event of a supply squeeze.
If SA were to introduce different time zones the morning and evening peaks would reduce, being spread over a longer period. SA Standard Time is UTC (co-ordinated universal time) plus two hours. Cape Town should actually be in UTC+1, while Gauteng could stay at UTC+2 and Durban move to UTC+3 (East African Time). The actual dividing points could be taken from the global time map.
Given the cost of diesel to run what were previously our “peaking” power stations, currently about R800m a month, surely it is worth giving time zones a try, especially as the current time regime is arbitrary anyway, having been introduced for the benefit of railway scheduling in 1893?
Other countries have multiple time zones. There are also arbitrary ones, such as Turkey time, New Caledonia time and even Tango time. If a time zone change were to reduce our peak electricity demand by 3,000MW, or 30% of the difference between maximum and lowest demand, it would be the same as adding an additional power station to the grid.
If a time zone change didn’t work, the country could revert back, so what is there to lose?
James Cunningham
Camps Bay
JOIN THE DISCUSSION: Send us an email with your comments to letters@businesslive.co.za. Letters of more than 300 words will be edited for length. Anonymous correspondence will not be published. Writers should include a daytime telephone number.
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