City Power in Johannesburg will embark on a three-day revenue collection effort from Tuesday to recover R363-million.

The electricity supplier plans to cut off defaulting business accounts in Region E, Alexandra.

According to a notice from the City, the entity will "take a tough line on defaulting prominent business accounts and cut off power supply on businesses that refuse to pay for services".

It will also remove illegal connections.

"The objective of this operation is to recover R363-million owed to the Alexandra Service Delivery Centre, improve revenue collection levels on outstanding debt, and further assist defaulting businesses with payment arrangements in settling their outstanding accounts." 

In November 2021, Johannesburg Mayor Mpho Phalatse was targeted by opposition parties who withdrew a motion of no confidence in her at the eleventh hour. Among several issues, the parties were concerned about what they called a "financial crisis" in the City.

Regional African National Congress chairperson Dada Morero said the City was on the verge of financial ruin.

Morero, who served as the mayor for 25 days until a court overturned a previous motion of no confidence in Phalatse, said in September that the City's budget was R3-billion under and that the collection rate had dropped to under 80%.

"The outcome of the... revenue underperformance against budget pronounced is itself a significant decrease in the cash balances of the City from R6.6-billion in June 2021 to R3.8-billion [in June 2022]."

Morero said the City required a minimum budget of R4.3-billion a month to continue operating.

However, Phalatse said although the City's finances were "not in the best position", the council was taking active steps to rectify it. Phalatse added that there was "little to no truth" in what Morero said.

Tuesday's effort is part of the City's ongoing attempts to recover revenue.