In another operation aimed at clamping down the illegal use of electricity, City Power disconnected over 120 housing units with bypassed prepaid meters in City Deep, Johannesburg.
The newly installed prepaid meters were disconnected on Monday following the updating process of meters in November 2024.
The operation follows a similar action taken just last week Wednesday in Kliptown Square, where more than 120 newly installed prepaid meters were also disconnected, and removed.
On Wednesday, City Power spokesperson, Isaac Mangena said they removed at least 122 prepaid meters and 114 circuit breakers to prevent illegal reconnection.
"Penalties have been imposed on customers who tampered with their meters, including fines exceeding R14,000 for single-phase connections, with potential penalties of over R30,000 for properties with three-phase connections to cover the cost of replacing the tampered meters," he said.
Mangena said power utility was deeply concerned by the growing number of newly installed prepaid meters being bypassed.
"Despite previous warnings to customers about the serious consequences of tampering with our meters, some individuals persist in engaging in this illegal activity. As a result, we are ramping up meter audits and removing bypassed meters to combat electricity theft.
"We are following leads against some contractors and even our own staff members who have been reported by some of these customers to be responsible for the bypassing of some of these meters charging anything between R2000 and R5000," he said.
"We caution the customers against colluding with these criminals as they will be facing the penalties alone and it's also a criminal offence," warned Mangena.
Moreover, Mangen said customers should not pay technicians, contractors, or individual to bypass their meters as this will lead to serious consequences.
"If anyone demands cash payments or offers illegal service connection, we strongly advise that they be reported immediately to our City Power Security Risk Management team on 011 490 7900/7911 or send a WhatsApp message to 083 579 4497," he said.
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