KwaDukuza municipality’s mounting electricity losses have come under scrutiny, with losses exceeding R440-million in a single financial year.

Dolphin Coast Residents and Ratepayers Association (Docrra) chief operating officer Mary Kassam raised concerns about the impact on municipal finances and service delivery at the association’s annual general meeting at Simbithi Country Club last Thursday.

“Why are our capital budgets shrinking? Why is service delivery not happening on the ground? It’s because we are busy servicing energy losses, and that is money that you and I, as ratepayers, are subsidising,” she said.

According to Docrra, electricity losses over the past four years have totalled about R1.3-billion.

Kassam said incorrect billing of major electricity consumers could be a significant contributor.

Following pressure from civic organisations, the municipality appointed a service provider under National Treasury’s RT29 contract to investigate the losses through meter inspections, billing reviews and checks for outstanding payments.

By August 31, inspections had been completed at 438 of the municipality’s 534 large electricity users.

Billing records had been reviewed for 28 customers, with 17 (61%) showing indications of possible incorrect billing.

Kassam cautioned that the sample was too small to draw conclusions about all large electricity users.

The investigation could help recover outstanding revenue, correct billing errors and prevent further losses.

The findings come after repeated electricity outages during the 2024/25 festive season, which disrupted homes and businesses.

A subsequent regulatory compliance audit identified more than a dozen areas of non-compliance, Kassam said.

This led to the establishment of a quarterly electricity end-user forum involving the municipality, civic organisations, business representatives and the national energy regulator.

Another concern is the Dukuza substation near Umhlali Country Club, which Kassam described as a municipal “white elephant”.

She said the project had cost more than R300-million but was still not supplying electricity.

Docrra is seeking tender documents, contractor details and testing certificates to establish why the infrastructure remains unused.

While acknowledging improved electricity stability since the festive season crisis, Kassam stressed that continued oversight was essential to protect municipal finances and ensure reliable services.

The Courier previously reported that the long-delayed Dukuza substation remained incomplete after funding for a critical second phase failed to materialise (‘Funding hurdles delay progress on Dukuza Substation project,’ 23 April). The then-acting KwaDukuza municipal manager Siyabonga Khanyile said efforts to secure national grant funding for the project had been unsuccessful but that the municipality would continue to explore alternative financing options.