Eskom is losing millions of rands to illegal electricity connections and infrastructure vandalism, with parts of the iLembe District among the hardest-hit areas.

These include Mandeni, Frasers informal settlement and the Khanani Housing Project.

Eskom said vandalism is reported regularly, depending on the area and the type of infrastructure affected.

Although the utility has not recorded an increase in vandalism in rural communities, technicians continue responding to incidents reported by residents and field staff.

Electricity infrastructure theft and vandalism nationally cost Eskom about R221-million between April 2024 and the end of February 2025. Although this was lower than the R271-million recorded during the same period the previous year, the financial losses and impact on electricity supply remain significant.

Eskom warned that vandalism often causes lengthy power outages because damaged transformers and other high-voltage equipment can take weeks to replace.

The utility also warned that illegal electricity connections and tampering with infrastructure pose serious safety risks.

“When transformers are drained of oil or connected to illegal installations, they can overheat and explode, leading to widespread power outages and, in some cases, loss of life,” Eskom said in a statement.

Asked whether it is standard policy to require communities to pay penalty fees or outstanding amounts linked to illegal electricity connections before damaged transformers are replaced, Eskom did not give a direct answer.

The utility also did not explain how it ensures law-abiding residents are not unfairly affected when power restoration is delayed because of illegal connections.

However, residents who pay for electricity legally can still be affected when outages caused by illegal connections are not repaired immediately.

For example, in many rural areas, four or five households are connected to a single transformer. While one household pays for its electricity legally, others may choose to tamper with their meters or connect illegally.

When that transformer is damaged or disconnected because of illegal activities, the household that pays for electricity legally also suffers the consequences because it is connected to the same transformer as those breaking the law.

To protect its infrastructure, Eskom said it runs awareness campaigns, deploys security personnel, works with law enforcement on disruptive operations and uses security technology with armed response capabilities at high-risk substations.

Residents are urged to report electricity theft, meter tampering, equipment theft and other electricity-related crimes anonymously via the Eskom Crime Line on 0800 11 27 22, WhatsApp on 081 333 3323, email at eskom@whistleblowing.co.za or SMS 31090.