Introduction to the Podcast and Special Guests The podcast welcomes special guests who are experts in energy crisis, including an engineer by profession, a researcher and chemical engineer, and a former Eskom employee.

The Root Cause of Energy Crisis The main source of the problem is that new power generation capacity was not built quickly enough. There were proposals made as far back as 1998-99 for building new generation capacity but decisions were never made until it was too late.

Technical Faults Leading to Load Shedding Load shedding began due to adding load into existing Fleet without any plan in place for adding generation capacity. Technical faults arose when there wasn't enough time given for proper design before placing contracts on site with bulldozers within just two years. Retrofitting designs led only mechanical upgrades instead of process upgrades which caused problems at Mitupi Power Station leading up to World Cup preparations in South Africa during Zuma's presidency.

Load Shedding Load shedding occurs when the demand for electricity exceeds supply. This is due to a lack of balance between the amount of electricity supplied and demanded by ordinary citizens, which hinders national security, economies, and social aspects.

Three Pillars Needed for Electricity Supply Chain To ensure that there is enough power capacity onto the grid in South Africa's energy sector requires three major pillars - infrastructure (supported by fossil fuels), policies/regulations, and well-skilled workforce. These three pillars need to work together with cross-border interaction between them.

Rumors on Comrades Looting & Privatization Conspiracy Theory There are rumors about comrades looting money from Eskom as they benefit from load shedding since it creates a shortage so additional IPPs can be signed benefiting cronies. The aim could be privatizing Eskom because reducing install capacity means stage six load sharing will occur if all units were operational again; this would mean no more profit-making opportunities through IPPs signing or other forms of corruption within Eskom itself.

Individual Solutions for Load Shedding As citizens, there is not much we can do to solve the overall problem of load shedding in South Africa. However, individuals can come up with their own solutions such as using PV or gas-to-power systems.

Diversification and Modernization Needed for Energy Sector To increase capacity and expand on renewable energy sources, a deep dive into planning and modernizing current infrastructure is needed. There should also be an expansion into different technologies within the renewable energy space while still focusing on fossil fuels.

Realistic Introduction of Renewable Technologies Renewable technologies have their place but they are being pushed beyond what they are capable of doing at this point in time. The introduction of these technologies should happen responsibly and realistically so that it does not cause more problems than it solves. Heavy investment needs to be injected within the overall energy sector to find long-term solutions for load shedding in South Africa which may last up until twelve years from now according to reports by Irina agency report world outlook

The Solution to Load Shedding The problem with load shedding is not the technology, but rather people. Plans need to be put in place by the government and a state of emergency may need to be declared for quick implementation of solutions such as using car power ships or nuclear ones.

Holistic View on Tackling Energy Crisis A holistic view needs to be taken when tackling South Africa's energy crisis. This includes having an immediate plan and a decade-long plan that involves cross-border, cross-sector interdisciplinary interaction between different industries. Citizens should hold the government accountable for providing workable plans.

Government Accountability and Infrastructure Development Citizens must hold their government accountable for infrastructure development which requires technically qualified individuals in positions such as Minister of Public Works or Minister of Energy instead of unqualified politicians who do not understand technical aspects related to these fields. Competition cannot exist within Eskom's own infrastructure so private sector companies would have no chance at competing unless they build their own transmission network across the country first before connecting it into Eskom’s grid system.