Lenasia businessman nabbed for illegally connecting mini-substation

City Power continued with its revenue collection drive on Thursday, and arrested a businessman in Lenasia for allegedly connecting a mini-substation illegally.

According to Lenasia general manager Nelson Ravuka, City Power found the 11KV mini-substation that disappeared from the City Power offices in Booysens 10 years ago at his premises on Thursday morning.

City Power records show that at the time, four mini-substations were procured, but one disappeared without a trace.

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Ravuka said the customer had applied for a 3 phase meter, but somehow ended up with a mini substation.

It was connected to the power utility’s network via a 1km cable, also suspected to have been stolen from the power utility.

The businessman was nabbed following a request by a new business nearby to be connected to the grid through the same substation.

City Power estimates the cost of a similar mini-substation at R400,000, with the cable costing about R900,000.

The substation was repossessed and returned to the City Power headquarters.

The power utility further disconnected a customer who had an outstanding debt of R1.5 million.

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The customer will be served with a penalty for this misconduct.

“Customers who settle debts or make arrangements will avoid disconnection and fees,” said Ravuka.

“Illegal connections exacerbate revenue losses, so we’re intensifying efforts to identify and disconnect them.”

Last Thursday, the power utility was in Midrand, where customers owed R350 million.

Two residential complexes were disconnected for debts of R25 million and R5 million each. A shopping centre was also cut off on Thursday for a debt of close to R10 million.

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“The service supply to this premise has been disconnected as the account is in arrears or no agreement has been signed with the City of Johannesburg,” said City Power.

“We urge customers to take advantage of payment arrangements and settlement options to avoid disconnection and associated fees. Your cooperation is crucial for the success of our revenue collection efforts.”