Illegal connections: About 700 Soweto homes in the dark after Eskom disconnects its power
About 700 houses in Diepkloof Zone 3, Soweto, are in the dark after Eskom disconnected its power supply to the area.
Eskom accused residents of illegally connecting electricity to their homes and disconnected them last week.
Eskom Gauteng spokesperson Amanda Qithi said they disconnected power in the township due to high energy losses caused by illegal connections, meter bypassing and the buying of electricity from ghost vendors.
Qithi said reconnection fees of R6 052 per household had to be paid before supply could be restored to homes.
This course of action by Eskom had left many residents fuming and they vented their anger by barricading roads, including the Soweto Highway.
Qithi said seven mini-substations supplied the 700 affected houses.
"Ever since we have converted the area into prepaid, they are not buying electricity. We then gave them fines of R6 052 per household. Illegal connections are rife, which is why they don't buy electricity because they are illegally connected.
"Eskom conducts network audits in all its areas of supply, not only in Soweto. When criminal activities are identified, the same process of disconnections will be followed," Qithi said.
Qithi said removing illegal connections to secure the network, repairing damaged infrastructure, and issuing of disconnection fees to be paid before the supply was restored, would be implemented in identified areas.
Comments
Research Reports
Projects
Latest Multimedia
Latest News
Showroom
Booyco Electronics, South African pioneer of Proximity Detection Systems, offers safety solutions for underground and surface mining, quarrying,...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Weir Minerals Europe, Middle East and Africa is a global supplier of excellent minerals solutions, including pumps, valves, hydrocyclones,...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation
