Nine-hour power outages in large parts of South Africa’s biggest city

City Power will implement extensive power outages in large parts of Johannesburg on Monday, 17 March, and Tuesday, 18 March 2025, as it carries out planned maintenance on its distribution network.

Speaking to 702, City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena said the outages would last around nine hours, and the utility started in Bryanston at 08:00 on Monday, 17 March.

“We are having an outage in Bryanston today between 08:00 and 17:00. This is for us to be able to do planned maintenance of our infrastructure in that area,” said Mangena.

“We are looking at ensuring that by at least 17:00, we should be done with most of the distribution network from the Bryanston substation.”

He explained that the maintenance is necessary to ensure City Power’s distribution network operates optimally, adding that it has plans for a similar outage in Alexandra.

“We are also doing the same in Alexandra with the substation. Several areas between 1st and 20th, along London Road, and towards the east of the Jukskei River will also be off,” said Mangena.

“This maintenance will look at the MV lines. It will also look at the load centres that have been problematic, and even those lines that have been stolen multiple times.”

He said City Power wants to replace the stolen lines to ensure that customers who are connected to them enjoy an uninterrupted power supply.

The power utility is also experiencing frequent distribution network outages in areas surrounding the recently replaced Hursthill substation near Melville.

When asked about the trips, Mangena said City Power didn’t have the budget to upgrade distribution networks surrounding the substation when it was replaced.

“Substations trip for different reasons. One of those may be someone interfering with infrastructure. It could also be the fact that there is just equipment failure at the substation or along the network,” he said.

“What is happening with the Hursthill substation, is that there has been several load centres within our supply network, not at the substation per se.”

“You’ll remember that the substation is brand new, but most of the distribution network into the suburbs is still old,” said Mangena.

He added that the networks were decades old.

Outrage over monthly R200 infrastructure fee

City Power implemented a R200 monthly fixed service fee for prepaid electricity users in July 2024, sparking outrage among prepaid electricity users it supplies.

The fee, which City Power had repeatedly proposed in the past, is to help the power utility generate revenue to maintain its electrical infrastructure.

Despite the backlash, the power utility has stood its ground. After the fee’s implementation, City Power board chair Bonolo Ramokhele said that Johannesburg’s electrical infrastructure would collapse without it.

“We must maintain the lines, substations, you name it. If we don’t invest in infrastructure, it will crumble and create a much bigger problem for all of us,” he added.

The City of Johannesburg had also already factored the R200 surcharge into its budget for the financial year.

It passed a budget of R83 billion through its funding model and warned that scrapping the fee would create financial problems for the City of Johannesburg.

Electricity and Energy Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa came to the power utility’s defence.

“We did warn a few years ago that the rate of perennial underinvestment in relation to municipal distribution infrastructure, you are likely going to hit a snag sometime down the line,” he said.

He explained that the gradual erosion of the municipal revenue base, resulting from the South African economy’s underperformance, resulted in utilities investing less and less to replenish and maintain their infrastructure.

However, he also warned that the trend of price hikes could lead to energy poverty, which is when power is available through the grid but poorer households can’t afford to access it.