South Africa

City Power Disconnects Newly Installed By-passed Prepaid Meters in City Deep

By Sithembile Moyo

City Power has disconnected power supply to 122 housing units, earlier today, 20 January 2025 at the Johannesburg Social Housing Company (JOSHCO) in City Deep
for illegally bypassing newly installed prepaid meters. This operation follows a similar action taken just five days ago at the JOSHCO housing units in Kliptown Square, where over 120 newly installed prepaid meters were also disconnected, and removed.

City Power Spokesperson, Isaac Mangena, said the Revenue Protection Team removed 122 prepaid meters and 114 circuit breakers to prevent illegal reconnection of the power supply.”Penalties have been imposed on customers who tampered with their meters, including fines exceeding R14,000 for single-phase connections, with potential penalties of over R30,000 for properties with three-phase connections to cover the cost of replacing the
tampered meters.”

“We are deeply concerned by the growing number of our newly installed prepaid meters being bypassed. Despite previous warnings to customers about the serious consequences of tampering with our meters, some individuals persist in engaging in this illegal activity. As a result, we are ramping up meter audits and removing bypassed meters to combat electricity theft,” added Mangena

Mangena further indicated that the city was following leads against some contractors and staff members who have been reported by some of these customers to be responsible for the bypassing of some of these meters charging anything between R2000 and R5000. “We caution the customers against colluding with these criminals as they will be facing the penalties alone and it’s also a criminal offence.”

“City Power has made it clear that we will not tolerate meter tampering in any form. All customers are obligated to pay for the electricity they use, and bypassing meters not only undermines the integrity of our network which is already constrained, but these actions create safety risks for residents within the property, and results in significant revenue loss.”

“We urge customers not to pay any technician, contractor, or individual to bypass their meters as this will lead to serious consequences. If anyone demands cash payments or offers illegal service connection, we strongly advise that they be reported immediately to our City Power Security Risk Management team on 011 490 7900/7911 or send a WhatsApp message to 083 579 4497,” concluded Mangena City Power is committed to ensuring fair electricity supply to all its customers and will continue to take action against those who engage in electricity theft.

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