City Power, Johannesburg's electricity supplier, has recorded 79,000 low- and medium-voltage incidents between January and October. The company is utilizing outage data to identify problem areas and target its response. According to City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena, 76,329 low-voltage and 3,221 medium-voltage incidents were recorded between January 1 and October 6. This data is being used to guide targeted improvements across City Power's Service Delivery Centres.
The areas with the highest number of low-voltage incidents were Hursthill with 13,716 incidents, followed by Randburg with 12,941 incidents, Reuven with 11,188 incidents, Roodepoort with 10,624 incidents, and the Inner City with 10,546 incidents. Mangena stated that 89.6% of affected customers were restored within 24 hours and 99.3% within seven days. City Power is focusing on reducing restoration times and strengthening the network.
City Power's response to the incidents includes infrastructure investment, maintenance, network upgrades, replacing vulnerable equipment, and efforts to reduce illegal connections and electricity losses. The utility is working to address an estimated R44 billion infrastructure backlog. Its 2026/27 capital programme allocates R2.354 billion to bulk infrastructure, network upgrades, secondary plant, metering, and renewable energy.
City Power has planned various projects across several areas, including Hursthill, the Inner City, Alexandra, Midrand, Randburg, Reuven, Roodepoort, and Lenasia. These projects include substation upgrades, transformer capacity improvements, cable replacement, and network refurbishment. A root-cause analysis conducted by City Power from July 1 to October 6 found that insulation failure accounted for about 33% of incidents, followed by equipment failure at about 21%.
Electricity losses remain a significant challenge for City Power. Executive Mayor Dada Morero stated that Johannesburg spends about R23 billion a year buying bulk electricity from Eskom but loses close to R7 billion due to unaccounted electricity consumption. This is attributed to illegal connections, meter bypassing, and theft. The city has settled its outstanding Eskom debt in August, which had become a major financial pressure.
City Power is committed to improving its services and reducing the number of incidents. The company is focusing on renewing vulnerable infrastructure and strengthening the network. This includes targeted attention on low-voltage incidents in Lenasia and medium- and high-voltage incidents in Alexandra. By addressing these challenges, City Power aims to improve the reliability of Johannesburg's electricity network.
City Power's efforts to strengthen the network are ongoing, with a focus on infrastructure investment and maintenance. The company is working to reduce electricity losses and improve restoration times. With its planned projects and targeted improvements, City Power aims to provide a more reliable electricity supply to Johannesburg residents.
Key points
- City Power recorded 79,000 low- and medium-voltage incidents between January and October.
- The company is using outage data to guide targeted improvements across its Service Delivery Centres.
- City Power is working to address an estimated R44 billion infrastructure backlog.
