City Power launches Winter Plan to curb unplanned outages
Resources being prioritised to reduce challenges
City Power has launched their Winter Plan in an effort to reduce unplanned outages in its supply areas.
The City of Johannesburg’s (CoJ) network is especially prone to outages during the winter season, mainly due to the increased demand for electricity. This results in the network becoming overloaded and equipment failing. Some of the areas most affected by overloading are Roodepoort, Lenasia, Midrand and Hursthill.
Areas affected by overloaded circuits, Lenasia, Midrand, HurstHill, Roodepoort pic.twitter.com/6EJ8GXxK8c
— @CityPowerJhb (@CityPowerJhb) May 10, 2017
Virgil James, City Power spokesperson, launched the Winter Plan on 8 May and said the key focus will be on areas of the network that experience repeated outages on the same day or week as well as prioritising resources to address these challenges. “This will include equipping technicians with fast-moving spares, strategic material and consumables in the event of an unplanned outage,” he said.
He added that they are also planning to increase the number of technicians attending to outages in the supply areas, as well as more teams to attend to emergency calls. “The plan has already driven us to proactively replace and repair sections of cables that have contributed to repeated outages. As far as possible, we have used aluminium cables as they have no value to thieves, thereby further ensuring an uninterrupted electricity supply. Constant monitoring of the network, maintenance and new technologies also form part of ongoing efforts to reduce outages,” said Virgil.
But, the effectiveness of the Winter Plan not only depends on the measures put in place, but requires cooperation from all electricity users. Because May is Energy Month, City Power urges everyone to use this month as a stepping stone to become more conscious of saving electricity, especially with winter approaching.
Some energy saving tips for residents this winter. #SaveEnergy pic.twitter.com/Vj3XMET4H5
— @CityPowerJhb (@CityPowerJhb) May 10, 2017
Some things you could do to save electricity, include:
• Use alternative and less intensive heating methods, such as gas, compact fluorescent lighting, solar water heaters and or heat generation through conventional fireplaces
• Switch off electricity when not in use
• Use or change to energy-efficient appliances and lighting
You can also cut your electricity bill by doing the following:
• Set your pool pump to run for shorter periods
• Switch off lights in unoccupied rooms
• Use electric blankets to pre-heat the bed for approximately 15 minutes (do not sleep with electric blankets left on)
• Dress warmly and use fleece blankets
• Preferably change your curtains to thicker and dark colours that retain more heat
• Make use of a geyser blanket
• Use the appropriate sized pot for each plate when you’re cooking. Using a small pot on a large plate will waste electricity
• Let plenty of warm sunlight in during the day by keeping curtains open wide, but close them as soon as the sun sets to seal in all the warmth
• Use or change to oil heaters or wall heaters (open spaces are more difficult to heat)
Virgil concluded by saying, “We rely on our customers to make the necessary adjustments to save electricity in their households. This in turn will decrease overloading of the network, prevent unplanned outages while easing pressure on the grid.”
Het jy dalk meer inligting rakende dié storie? Stuur gerus vir ons ‘n e-pos na roodepoortrecord@caxton.co.za (sluit asseblief kontakbesonderhede in) of skakel ons by 011 955 1130.
Vir daaglikse gratis gemeenskapsnuus aan die Wes-Rand, besoek ook ons susterkoerante se webtuistes
Besoek ook ons Facebook, Twitter en Instagram blaaie om jou stem te laat tel!
