City Power has withdrawn service delivery in Tshepisong due to illegal connections in the area, continued acts of sabotage and repeated unlawful reconnection of infrastructure that has not yet been commissioned.

According to spokesperson Isaac Mangena, this decision is effective from Friday, July 24, and it includes withdrawing all technical restorations and maintenance services.

Mangena says the withdrawal will remain in place until residents comply with the agreed normalisation process and allow the entity to complete the work without interference.

He says technicians will also return to the area once there is an 80% vending threshold and a commitment from the community to protect electricity infrastructure from illegal activities.

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“This decision follows repeated incidents where community members have illegally reconnected newly installed pole-mounted transformers and thrown wires onto electricity lines to deliberately trip the network, placing lives at risk, damaging critical infrastructure and undermining ongoing efforts to restore a safe and sustainable electricity supply,” he says.

The normalisation process refers to City Power’s structured intervention programme aimed at restoring electricity supply in areas where infrastructure has been severely compromised by illegal connections, meter tampering, overloaded transformers and unsafe electrical installations.

“The programme involves rebuilding and strengthening the electricity network, installing new transformers where necessary, replacing damaged infrastructure, installing prepaid metering infrastructure and encouraging customers to purchase electricity consistently before supply is restored.”

He says it is also designed to create a safe, stable and financially sustainable electricity network.

“Without normalisation, newly installed infrastructure is repeatedly overloaded, damaged and destroyed within a short period, resulting in recurring outages that affect entire communities.

“The normalisation programme is not unique to Tshepisong, nor is it targeted at the community. City Power has implemented the same programme in several communities across Johannesburg where electricity infrastructure had been compromised by illegal connections, meter tampering and persistent overloading.”

Tshepisong a challenge to City Power

Mangena says Tshepisong remains a challenge as 97% of customers are not purchasing electricity and only 3% are vending.

“The area has more than 12 000 electricity customers, yet current electricity vending remains critically low. Those purchasing electricity largely comprise businesses. This level of compliance is far below what is required to sustain the electricity network.”

The entity says they’ve invested millions of rands in the area over several years and yet illegal connections, meter bypassing, cable tampering and network overloading continue to destroy infrastructure and reverse the progress made.

Mangena says between January and May 2025 alone, more than 20 new pole-mounted transformers were installed at an estimated cost of about R400 000 each.

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Normalisation programme underway in Tshepisong

Residents are required to make an initial electricity purchase of R500, while pensioners registered on the Expanded Social Package are required to make an initial purchase of R200.

Mangena says these initial purchases are part of the requirements before newly installed infrastructure can be safely energised. Thereafter, all residents will be required to continue purchasing electricity for their own ongoing consumption in the same way as every other legally connected electricity customer.

“Although several transformers have already been installed and are ready to supply electricity, they have not yet been switched on because the community has not achieved the required compliance levels.

“Instead of supporting the process, some individuals have illegally reconnected these transformers before commissioning and continue to interfere with the network by reconnecting infrastructure unlawfully and throwing wires onto overhead electricity lines to deliberately trip feeders. These actions have made it impossible for City Power to continue carrying out restoration work safely. “

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Community engagements are ongoing

Mangena confirms that the entity is having continuous engagements with the community throughout the implementation of the normalisation programme.

He says meetings are held daily with the ward councillor and community leadership to provide progress updates, address concerns and monitor compliance with the agreed restoration process.

“The safety of City Power employees also remains a serious concern. Technicians cannot continue to work in an environment where infrastructure is deliberately sabotaged, illegal reconnections occur while work is underway and employees are exposed to unsafe working conditions.

“The decision to withdraw services is not intended to punish law-abiding residents. It is a necessary intervention to protect employees, safeguard public infrastructure and ensure that further investment is not immediately destroyed through unlawful activities,” he concludes.