The damage to these substations resulted in a temporary load shedding schedule for parts of Alrode.
With this new schedule that is implemented over and above the normal load shedding by Eskom, business are negatively affected.
Councillor Neil Diamond explains that Alrode is one of the largest industrial nodes in South Africa and is thus a major economic contributor to our region.
“I am not sure how much more business and industry can endure before we start seeing economic casualties, industries closing and major job losses in our area,” Neil Diamond commented on the implications the new schedule would have on businesses in Alrode.
Businesses owners have also spoken out about the effect the past week has had on their business.
Justin Robert from Sign Wonder explained that they did not have electricity for two days. They do not have a generator and this meant that he had to hire one at R350 per day and still buy petrol to fuel the generator. As a result of the already short week and the power outages, Sign Wonder lost clients due to the long waiting period.
The Ekurhuleni Metro Municipality (EMM) implemented the temporary load reduction schedule as a way to reduce the inconvenience of the power supply interruptions that businesses have gone through last week.
At this stage the oil valves have already been replaced and technicians are working on the process to purify the oil that has been replaced in the transformers. When asked about the estimated time the schedule will be implemented, they told the RECORD that unfortunately none was available. Technicians are not able to predict a time period, because of the nature of the work.
In light of the recent events, this also leaves businesses asking what the EMM will do to prevent theft at substations.
“Something has to be done about this business crisis in Alrode, and Ekurhuleni should seriously consider directing resources to improve security at substations that supply industrial areas,” Cllr Diamond added on the subject of preventative measures at substations.
For the temporary load shedding schedule, please go to page , and for more information on the situation visit www.albertonrecord.co.za
