City Power is addressing the power crisis through various intervention programmes
JOHANNESBURG – The City had initially budgeted R1.2 billion for the new state of the art substation.
Johannesburg City Power is addressing the power crisis through various intervention programmes including the launch of the new Sebenza substation in Kempton Park on 7 February.
The four-year project which was also the biggest of its kind imple4mented by the City recently reached fruition in record time and without injuries during the construction phase. There was also a saving of R50 million from the original budget.
The City had initially budgeted R1.2 billion for the new state of the art substation to feed areas including Modderfontein, Gresswold, Sandringham, Alexandra, Athol Oaklands, Rosebank, Melrose and Parkhurst. It was built to mitigate against power outages arising from electricity demand exceeding supply across the city.
Project coordinator in the City’s Engineering Services Tefo Khama said the substation had been installed with cutting edge technology and would relieve the load of the two power stations that also supply the areas. He said the substation had three transformers and a fourth is anticipated to be installed in the near future to meet the power needs envisaged including that of the Modderfontein development which is in the pipeline. Furthermore, insulated cables had been used to prevent power outages in case of fire or other emergencies.
“The reason we had saved the R50 million was because we had initially identified suppliers from abroad for cables. However, when the project commenced there was a local supplier available which saved City Power a lot of money,” said Khama.
City of Johannesburg Mayor Herman Mashaba said the Sebenza substation was a significant milestone in the multi-party government’s efforts to provide services that would improve residents’ quality of life through a reliable power supply.
“This also goes a long way in bolstering economic activity throughout the city, particularly with Johannesburg being a strategic driver for Gauteng and South Africa’s growth for jobs and ease of doing business,” said Mashaba.
He added that in many areas, infrastructure had been built decades ago for communities that have now grown substantially in size. A total of 27 per cent of the City’s bulk transformers have been running past their useful lifespan, producing a staggering 177 000 low voltage outages in 2017/18. The upgrade is also part of City Power’s efforts to electrify informal settlements across the city.
Roosevelt Park substation upgrade
Mashaba accompanied by the MMC for Environment and Infrastructure Services, Nico de Jager made an oversight visit to the Roosevelt Park substation on 6 February which has been undergoing significant upgrades by City Power to the tune of R133 million.
The lack of infrastructure upgrades at the substation has been at the root of power failures in the area which has affected local businesses and households over the years. According to Mashaba, refurbishments to the equipment at the 65-year-old substation have not been completed in more than two decades.
“With a R170 billion, 10-year infrastructure backlog, it makes the job of sustaining the current power supply that much more difficult,” said Mashaba.
“The upgrade of this substation is therefore very important, not only to these affected residents but also to the entire city of Johannesburg’s electrical network. I am happy to report that the substation upgrade is also now 60 per cent complete, and due to be finalised by September this year.”
The upgrade will stabilise the network for the next 20 years.
Eskom, according to president Cyril Ramaphosa. Meanwhile, President Cyril Ramaphosa revealed in his State of the Nation Address that embattled Eskom had come up with a nine-point turnaround plan which will also require the utility to take urgent steps to significantly reduce its costs.
“To ensure the credibility of the turnaround plan and avoid a similar financial crisis in a few years’ time, Eskom will need to develop a new business model. This business model needs to take into account the root causes of its current crisis and the profound international and local changes in the relative costs and market penetration of energy resources, especially clean technologies,” he said.
Ramaphosa added that to bring credibility to the turnaround and to position South Africa’s power sector for the future, government will immediately embark on a process of establishing three separate entities namely, Generation, Transmission and Distribution all under Eskom Holdings.
“This will ensure that we isolate cost and give responsibility to each appropriate entity. It will also enable Eskom to be able to raise funding for its various operations more easily from funders and the market.”
Furthermore, Ramaphosa said government needed to take steps to reduce municipal non-payment and confront the culture of non-payment that existed in some communities.
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