South African power utility, Eskom on Wednesday issued an alert level one urging users to reduce electricity supply due to a constrained system. 

"Eskom requests the public to reduce electricity usage as the power generation system is still severely constrained. This morning one generation unit each at the Kendal and Tutuka power stations tripped, adding to the Tutuka unit that tripped yesterday evening," said the organisation. 

It said teams were "hard at work" to return the units to service. 

"While the Medupi unit that tripped yesterday evening has been successfully returned to service today, the power generation system remains constrained.

"Any additional breakdowns will compromise Eskom’s ability to supply the country through the peak demand period of 17:00 – 21:00. This constrained supply situation may persist through the weekend."

The utility urged the public to cooperate in managing demand in order to help it supply the country’s demand through peak periods.

Eskom has been struggling to supply the country with a consistent supply of electricity due to years of mismanagement and corruption that led to maintenance being neglected and its coffers being stripped. 

The utility is R450-billion in debt.