City Power has cited the location of the Greenville informal settlement, beneath high-voltage electricity lines, as an obstacle to resolving illegal connections in Alexandra.

The issue was raised following a joint enforcement operation conducted on September 9 along Vincent Tshabalala Road, including the Greenville informal settlement. During the operation, City Power, working with the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD), seized about 180 000kg of mixed aluminium cables and three poles, with an estimated value of R200 000.

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The area has presented several challenges to City Power and has been disconnected multiple times. According to City Power, the difficulty in resolving Greenville’s illegal connections cannot be separated from where the settlement itself is situated. The area has developed under high-voltage infrastructure, a condition that imposes significant safety and planning restrictions on any formalisation process. City Power said this positioning is what prevents Greenville from being formally proclaimed for conventional housing, and by extension, from receiving a standard, fully regulated electricity network of the kind installed in formalised areas.

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In the absence of that formal network, residents in the settlement have instead relied on informal and often unsafe connections. During the operation, City Power teams encountered a network of makeshift electricity connections, with bare aluminium cables strung loosely between poles, rooftops and informal structures. City Power said the risks created by this arrangement are not confined to the settlement itself. The illegal connections identified during the operation were located close to Zenzele Primary School on Vincent Tshabalala Road, raising concerns about exposure among learners, teachers and the wider school community.

City Power acting CEO Charles Tlouane said what they encountered was extremely concerning, particularly because the activity took place in close proximity to Zenzele Primary School, adding that children should not be exposed to the danger posed by bare electricity cables and makeshift connections.

While the constraints around Greenville itself remain unresolved, City Power said it continues to run a normalisation programme in the formalised houses along London Road, aimed at improving the electricity network in areas where formal proclamation is possible.

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