Cape battles illegal power supply

The City of Cape Town is battling to prevent illegal electricity connections to the grid and the problem is becoming worse. The city has been struggling to curb its prevalence mainly because of resistance from communities. Illegal electricity connections cost the city about R17m in 2015-16.

The City of Cape Town is battling to prevent illegal electricity connections to the grid and the problem is becoming worse.

The city has been struggling to curb the problem mainly because of resistance from communities. Illegal electricity connections cost the city about R17m in 2015-16. According to power utility Eskom, illegal connections remain one of the leading causes of electricity-related injuries and deaths in SA.

Last week, attempts by City of Cape Town officials to disconnect illegal users resulted in violent protest action in Schaapkraal and the Philippi Horticultural Area.

The area is home to Egoli and Jim se Bos informal settlements. According to the city, both of these settlements are on privately owned land and, therefore, cannot be electrified without legal agreement from the landowner, which has not been provided. As a result, illegal connections abound, resulting in the vandalism of electricity infrastructure in the area, as well as disruptions to the power supply of neighbouring communities.

The two settlements account for about 2,000 illegal connections, with an estimated loss of 6kWh per connection per day, mayoral committee member for utility services Ernest Sonnenberg said.

The loss of income to the city is estimated at nearly R650,000 a month, he said. In addition, power failures have become common and affect nearly 900 legally connected customers. The city has to account for the increased cost of repairs caused by vandalism and the associated overtime pay to effect repairs.

“We have also had to start employing the services of law enforcement to protect our staff when they go into these areas because of the risk of violent backlash.

“After the most recent events in Philippi, where our vehicles were stoned and staff threatened, a number of them have had to go for trauma counselling and are reluctant to return to the area,” said Sonnenberg.