Residents who have not had electricity for over a year will be reconnected to the grid by the end of the week. Some sections of Swaneville in Krugersdorp have been in the dark after their local transformers were damaged.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi was there with power utility Eskom to oversee the replacement of these transformers. Community members were pleased with the prospect to finally have electricity again.
They say they had to resort to illegal connections to keep the lights on while others say they could no longer keep up with the cost of alternative power sources such as gas.
Eskom maintains transformers and mini substation which supply electricity to households are damaged due to over loading. Technicians were on the ground replacing transformers, mini substations and installing smart metres.
The Gauteng Premier has set a target to replace all damaged transformers by December. He will be working with Eskom to replace 11 transformers a week in communities that have become accustomed to living in the dark.
Lesufi says this is in an effort to restore power to over two million people in the province. Residents who have tampered with their metres will still be required to pay a R6 500 penalty.
