PHALABORWA – Load reduction could soon become a thing of the past for residents of Ba-Phalaborwa following a recent meeting between Mayor Merriam Malatji and representatives from Eskom.

The meeting focused on addressing load reduction challenges and improving grid stability in the area.

Both the municipality and Eskom reaffirmed their commitment to stabilising the electricity grid to ensure a reliable power supply for all residents.

Eskom also announced plans to roll out smart meters, which are intended to improve billing accuracy, simplify electricity purchases, and help households manage their energy consumption more effectively.

Residents react with mixed feelings

However, the introduction of smart meters has been met with mixed reactions from residents. Some have raised concerns about their cost and the fact that they are difficult to tamper with.

Eskom noted that in areas such as Nkowankowa, smart meters were installed, particularly where there had been widespread tampering with older meters.

In those areas, consistent electricity purchases by residents have contributed to a decrease in load reduction.

Eskom cautioned that eliminating load reduction will only be possible with community cooperation.

Illegal vendors and connections targeted

Residents were urged to avoid buying electricity from illegal or “ghost” vendors and to stop all unlawful connections.

Meanwhile, residents in Extension 1 and parts of the industrial area experienced prolonged power cuts from Friday, May 1, which were only resolved on Monday, May 4.

Councillor blasts supervisor shortages

Ward 11 Cllr Lonika Booysen expressed concern that the outage was worsened by the absence of two electricity supervisors, while those on duty struggled to identify the fault promptly.

Booysen appealed to the municipality to ensure that not all supervisors are away during long weekends and month-end periods, noting that many residents were forced to discard spoiled food due to the outage.

She also called on the municipality to provide electricians with adequate equipment and sufficient cables to address faults more efficiently.

She concluded by highlighting cable theft as a major ongoing challenge and urged the community to unite in combating the problem.