Curro Holdings has challenged City Power’s decision to disconnect electricity supply to Curro Midrand Sagewood in Noordwyk, describing the action as unlawful and maintaining that power was restored within an hour.

The response follows a June 23 operation in which City Power’s Revenue Protection Unit, assisted by City Power Security and the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD), disconnected electricity to the private school over an alleged outstanding debt of R9.3m.

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City Power said the school was among four high-value defaulters identified during the operation, with the combined outstanding debt across the properties amounting to R38.1m. According to the utility, the arrears date back to 2023 despite ongoing engagement and recovery efforts.

City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena said the utility had exhausted several avenues to recover the outstanding amount before taking enforcement action.

“…The school currently owes approximately R9.3m, which has accumulated over an extended period despite repeated engagements and recovery efforts,” said Mangena.

City Power acting CEO Charles Tlouane had also expressed concern over the size of the debt, noting that a private educational institution of Curro’s stature would generally be expected to maintain its financial obligations.

However, Curro has strongly disputed both the debt and the disconnection. In a statement provided to Midrand Reporter, Curro Holdings stated that a City Power team, accompanied by JMPD officers, arrived at Curro Sagewood on the morning of June 23 and disconnected the school’s electricity supply ‘without prior notice’.

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“The disconnection was unlawful, and power was restored within an hour,” reads the statement. “In July 2021, Curro lodged a formal billing dispute with the City of Johannesburg regarding the amount claimed.

The dispute has been amplified with further substantiation and is supported by an independent expert report confirming that City Power’s billing is incorrect.”

The school group states that the alleged debt originated from clearance fees attributable to a previous property owner, which the City of Johannesburg improperly loaded onto Curro’s municipal account.

“The amount was initially reversed by the city on its own records, only to be added back in subsequent invoices as purported unpaid utilities with no breakdown or substantiation provided.”

Curro further states that during protracted engagement between the parties and their legal representatives since 2022, the City of Johannesburg’s own authorised officials agreed that Curro did not owe the amount in question and that the dispute should be resolved accordingly.

“The city has failed to honour that undertaking.

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In 2025, having exhausted all administrative avenues, Curro instructed its attorneys to approach the High Court to compel the city to give effect to what its own officials had agreed.

That application is pending. The city indicated it would oppose, but has not filed any papers, and Curro has applied for a set-down date…”

Midrand Reporter has sent City Power a query to respond to Curro’s statement. Grab a copy of Midrand Reporter to get more insight about this story and what City Power had to say in response.

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