City Power confiscates 60 000kg of illegally connected cables from Kanana Extension 4 informal settlement in Rabie Ridge

City Power’s Midrand Service Delivery Centre (SDC) successfully removed and confiscated approximately 60 000kg of cables, valued at around R6m, from Kanana Extension 4 informal settlement in Rabie Ridge on October 16.

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The power utility spokesperson, Isaac Mangena, said this informal settlement is one of many across the city that are contributing significantly towards network overload and infrastructure damage, leading to prolonged outages.

He said the extreme levels of illegal connections in the area are also contributing towards the enforcement of load reduction to avoid the destruction of their network.
“In this area, City Power has replaced 10 transformers this year. Three in August, four in September, and now halfway through October, we have already had three damaged transformers. This is not only highly unsustainable and excessively costly to manage, but it’s unfairly affecting customers in neighbouring areas that are paying for services,” said Mangena.

In July, City Power carried out the removal of illegal connection operation in the same area where they managed to impound around 18 000kg of cables that were connected to their grid illegally.

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“Last week, community members staged a public demonstration outside our Midrand SDC offices, to raise their concern about a prolonged outage which was caused by a damaged pole-mounted transformer. That transformer failed due to illegal connections. A new transformer has been installed and we hope that with illegal connections removed, it will hold the load and remain operational for a long time,” added Mangena.

He said illegal connections, theft, and vandalism continue to significantly contribute towards the loss of supply for paying customers and revenue for the power utility.

“We are seeing an increase in the number of illegal connections and the expansion of back-room dwellers which negatively affects the provision of services to our paying customers. These illegal connections and backroom dwellers lead to an overloaded network which further compromises network health. These factors are among the key contributors to load reduction remaining in effect. We have intensified our efforts around removing illegal connections as part of our broader strategy of reducing the enormous load on the network,” added Mangena.

He said City Power remains steadfast in its commitment to ensuring that all consumers become legitimate customers.

Mangena added that while they continue to take decisive action against those involved in the illegal connection syndicate, they are also engaging with the Department of Human Settlement to ensure that as many settlements as possible are duly electrified.

Residents, particularly those who are paying for services, are asked to help monitor and report suspicious activities by contacting City Power on 0800 002 587.

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