The Tshwane municipality plans to replace over 11 000 faulty and ageing prepaid water meters in Olievenhoutbosch over an estimated four-month period.

This will form part of a project aimed at improving water metering accuracy, reducing water losses, and strengthening revenue management.

MMC for Utility Services Frans Boshielo said the project is the metro’s response to long-standing challenges linked to prepaid water meters installed in Olievenhoutbosch in the early 2000s.

He explained that the meters were originally introduced by the Water and Sanitation Business Unit as part of the metro’s water demand management initiative.

“Approximately 11 400 prepaid water meters were installed across Olievenhoutbosch extensions 13, 15, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 36, and 37 in Region 4,” said Boshielo.

He noted that, over the years, many of these prepaid meters have deteriorated due to flat batteries, faulty electronic components, tampering, and vandalism.

“As a result, the city has experienced inaccurate billing and increased water losses in the area.”

Boshielo stated that a significant number of the meters are no longer functional, contributing to the metro’s Non-Revenue Water levels, which stood at 42.9% at the end of November 2025.

In response to these challenges, the MMC said the Water and Sanitation Business Unit initiated the Olievenhoutbosch Prepaid Water Meter Replacement Project, which aims to replace prepaid meters with conventional water meters.

He confirmed that this move is intended to improve metering accuracy, reduce water losses, and strengthen the city’s revenue management systems.

The project began in October 2025 but was delayed due to challenges encountered within the community.

“These issues have since been resolved through my intervention and leadership, working closely with local councillors to ensure the project could proceed. Following these engagements, the project officially resumed on January 8,” added Boshielo.

“To date, 452 water meters have been replaced, with 10 848 replacements still outstanding.”

He added that the metro anticipates replacing about 3 000 meters per month, which should allow the project to be completed within an estimated four-month period, subject to continued co-operation from the community.

According to Boshielo, the implementation of this project will be carried out in phases to minimise disruptions to residents.

He explained that communities will be informed in advance of work scheduled in their areas and that water interruptions, where unavoidable, will be kept to a minimum.

He also appealed to residents to support the project by co-operating with the appointed contractor and protecting the newly installed infrastructure.

“Residents are urged to co-operate with the appointed contractor, safeguard the newly installed infrastructure, and report any incidents of vandalism or illegal connections. Community co-operation is critical to ensuring the long-term sustainability of water services.”

Boshielo reiterated that the metro remains committed to providing safe, reliable, and sustainable water services to all residents of Olievenhoutbosch.

He added that the success of the meter replacement project will play an important role in achieving this objective.

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