City Power is stepping up efforts to combat electricity theft in the Johannesburg Central Business District (CBD), targeting illegal connections and meter bypassing prevalent in hijacked buildings.
The utility’s Revenue Protection Unit, in collaboration with law enforcement, conducted operations in two buildings on the day in question. At one of the sites in Doornfontein, officials were actively cutting illegal electricity cables.
City Power representatives explained that these actions have been ongoing for some time, with illegal connections already disconnected in three hijacked buildings as part of the broader initiative.
A manager from the inner city operations emphasized the importance of the crackdown for community safety and infrastructure protection. “In terms of law, we need to cut them for the safety of the communities and safety of our infrastructure,” the manager stated. “We cannot have an abnormal plant on the side of operations.”
The manager urged customers with payment arrangements to adhere strictly to them, warning that failure to comply would result in disconnection due to breach of service conditions. “If you make arrangement make sure that you follow that arrangement don’t be surprised if you don’t follow that arrangement they will come back and disconnect you.”
Addressing resident complaints—where tenants claim they pay for electricity but face disconnections—the manager clarified the distinction between tenants and building owners. In many cases, tenants pay the building owner for electricity, but the owner fails to remit payments to City Power. “We only talk to the owners make sure the owner is paying their bills,” the manager said. “If you submit to the customers make sure that the customers are paying even they must do justice to pay the customers.”
The issue of repeated reconnections after disconnections was also raised. The manager noted ongoing enforcement measures, including improving access control and repairing broken doors to secure infrastructure. “We make sure that there will be access control where we can able to fix our apparatus so we can have hardly not accessible areas,” the manager explained, stressing the need for safe conditions for operators and the community.
In some instances, buildings were deemed illegal due to absent owners who have not come forward. “If owners must come forward then we can sit down and have a solution,” the manager said. Restoration of power would require owners to settle bills and ensure the building complies with regulations, including proper structural condition, electricity, and water services. “It’s not about the issue of the payment alone even the structure of the building must comply with the regulations.”
City Power indicated that operations will continue across additional buildings to ensure residents pay for electricity services and to maintain overall service delivery in the inner city.