for nokuthula dube, it means that her scones won't be ready in time. each day if they're to sell like hotcakes. normally, business is good enough for nokuthula and her daughter to get by. but recent weeks have been tough. the power was switched off daily in their district. a state-mandated energy saving measure, known in south africa as “load shedding.” nokuthula: load shedding is driving us crazy. i have a small business and we're trying to grow, but this is holding us back a lot. sometimes i have things in the oven when they shut off the electricity, and i can't finish baking them. then they all have to be thrown out. reporter: she's angry at the government. 2.5 hours without electricity means getting her scones to market that much later. and that cuts into her earnings. the whole country is suffering as a result. for the past 15 years, south africa's state-owned electricity provider has had to interrupt supply to certain areas to prevent the power grid from collapsing. however, this winter has been especially hard, and it's affecting all sections of