State-owned power utility Eskom says Unit 1 of the Koeberg nuclear power station was taken offline safely and within procedure early on August 28 following a turbine trip.

The cause of the turbine trip is currently under investigation. Eskom will provide updates as new information becomes available.

All plant monitoring confirmed that operating conditions remained stable throughout the event. Nuclear safety was never compromised and there was no risk to employees, the public or the environment.

Koeberg’s protection and monitoring systems functioned as designed, ensuring the unit always remained safe, it adds.

Koeberg’s Unit 1 was last taken offline for major maintenance in October 2025. Since then, the unit has operated reliably.

Generation was temporarily reduced in August this year as a precautionary measure owing to seawater intake challenges linked to a sardine influx near the station’s cooling water system, Eskom says.

Additionally, during the same period, increased sardine mortality was reported along the Southwestern and West Coast.

The matter remains the subject of an ongoing inter-agency investigation led by the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, and there is currently no evidence linking these incidents to Koeberg’s operations.

The removal of Unit 1’s capacity from the grid poses no risk to the national electricity supply, Eskom assures the public, stating that it has sufficient generation capacity available and that the grid remains stable and secure.