Three weeks to complete cable repairs, promises City Power after inner city residents take to the streets

JOHANNESBURG - City Power said high electricity consumption in Yeoville and Bellevue was contributing to the ongoing electricity challenges in the area.

Frustrated community members took to the streets earlier on Saturday, marching to City Power's Doornfontein Depot after the utility implemented emergency load reduction on Friday night.

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The power utility said this was done to reduce the strain on the substation that has been marred with challenges since December when a substation in Observatory that supplies electricity to Bellevue and Yeoville burnt down, damaging infrastructure in the process.

City Power's general manager in the inner city, Arsenio Cossa, said significant steps have been taken to address this.

“We have already taken a few steps to resolve this long-standing problem. We’re installing interconnected cables between Observatory and Bellevue that are currently assisting us to provide power to residents of Bellevue in the absence of the 88 cable line.”

Khosa said repairs to the cable should be completed soon.

“So far we have established that we need another three weeks to complete those repairs, but those are short-term solutions. In the long term, we are also looking into reinforcing and stabilising the grid in this area.”