City Power chases R40m in revenue collection drive, as body corporate pays R1m ahead of operation
The Midrand Service Delivery Centre of City Power went on a revenue collection campaign recently to recover funds owed to them, and disconnect defaulters. Defaulters owe the Service Delivery Centre R346m, while the utility is owed billions by its customers across the city.
A body corporate in Sagewood, supplied by the Midrand Service Delivery Centre (SDC), made an immediate payment of R1m towards its R4m debt to avoid disconnection and entered into a payment arrangement.
This occurred on November 21 when the power utility was about to commence with its revenue collection.
Defaulters, among them seven large power users (LPUs) and five body corporates, with a combined debt of R40m had their power supply cut off.
City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena said this operation is part of the entity’s ongoing efforts to address the growing issue of unpaid electricity bills and non-compliance.
“Among those disconnected were three LPUs in Randjespark, collectively owing over R15m. Additional defaulters included four more body corporates: one in Country View owing R1.5m, another in Halfway Gardens with a debt of R4.5m, a third in Sagewood owing R6.3m, and a fourth in Erand Gardens with a debt of R9.1m,” said Mangena.
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Two circuit breakers were confiscated at different locations.
As the operation was in full swing, some owners and tenants of one of the affected residential complexes were shocked to discover that their body corporate had been underpaying for electricity services, despite receiving full monthly payments from tenants.
Mangena said this was an unfortunate situation which left the residents without power despite their monthly contributions.
“City Power strongly condemns this practice and urges tenants to hold their landlords accountable for ensuring timely payments for essential services. We are deeply concerned about the growing number of customers who are not paying their electricity bills, despite their ability to do so. This includes instances of underpayment, as seen with the targeted defaulters in today’s operation. We urge all customers, both residential and commercial, to make timely payments and engage with the utility if they are facing financial difficulties. This will ensure that customers avoid disruption of services,” added Mangena.
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He said the utility is owed R9.6b by defaulting customers across the city, and of this amount, just over R346m is owed by businesses and residential customers within the Midrand SDC supply areas.
He said they are dedicated to providing reliable and safe electricity services to their customers, however, illegal connections undermine these efforts and threaten the integrity of the electricity network.
“We plead for residents’ co-operation in reporting suspicious activities as this is essential to maintaining a safe and sustainable power supply for all,” concluded Mangena.
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