Eskom on Saturday ramped up load shedding to stage 4, saying demand for electricity was higher than anticipated, causing some units to trip.

South Africa is in the grips of a cold snap with the Western Cape, Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal experiencing snowfall.

The cold weather has inevitably resulted in increased power usage.

On Saturday, the South African weather service issued a severe weather warning for KwaZulu-Natal as torrential rain and strong winds could trigger floods and mudslides in the province.

Eskom's Sikonathi Mantshantha says at the moment, they're unable to meet the country's energy demands.

"Eskom will continue to closely monitor the system, adjust and communicate any changes as may be necessary. We currently have 3805 Megawatts of planned maintenance, while another 16 000 Megawatts of capacity is unavailable due to breakdowns," says Mantshantsha.

Parts of the country also recorded its first snowfall of 2022 as temperatures plummet in several provinces across South Africa.

The high-lying areas of the KwaZulu-Natal and Lesotho recorded heavy snowfall with large areas blanketed in white.

The Sani Pass, a mountain pass which connects the west of KwaZulu-Natal with Lesotho resembles a winter wonderland courtesy of heavy overnight snowfall.

Further snowfall is expected in the region with the mercury expected to drop well below zero overnight.

Meanwhile, in Gauteng traffic officals have warned motorists to be cautious on the road.

The South African weather service is monitoring a potential risk of flooding in the low-lying areas of Gauteng, particularly in the City of Johannesburg.

This article first appeared on EWN : Cold snap across the country likely to exacerbate the loadshedding situation