Minister Pravin Gordhan commends Eskom teams for restoring power to Karoo communities
15 February 2024
The Minister of Public Enterprises, Mr Pravin Gordhan has commended the teams of Eskom engineers and technicians who have worked around the clock to restore power to multiple towns and communities in the Karoo in the Western Cape.
“The Eskom personnel have done an incredible job of restoring supply to the affected communities five days ahead of schedule,” said Minister Gordhan. “We congratulate the leadership of Eskom for this great outcome, in particular Mr Monde Bala -- Group Executive, Distribution – whose teams have shown their true mettle under some very challenging circumstances,” Minister Gordhan added.
Towns including Sutherland, Roggeveld, Laingsburg, Ladismith, Leeu Gamka, Swartberg, Merweville, Matjiesfontein, Prince Albert and Fraserburg in the Central Karoo region have been without power since Saturday night, 3 February 2024, when adverse weather hit critical electricity infrastructure.
Seven pylons of a 132Kv line collapsed, affecting about 4,000 customers. Eskom has since deployed 22 temporary wooden structures to support the lines. The work also required the use of specialized equipment, including a 55-ton crane and a 20-ton jack hammer to drill the rock and insert the support structures.
The restoration of power also involved 70 employees, and the restarting of seven substations and several cold transformers in Laingsburg and the surrounding area.
“The restoration of power in the affected areas of the Karoo underscores Eskom’s commitment to ensure that power disruptions are resolved expeditiously,” said Minister Gordhan.
“As government, we want to reassure the public that no effort will be spared in our pursuit of delivering a secure and reliable power supply to our people. The current power challenges will be overcome as all our efforts are geared towards enabling Eskom to be more responsive to the needs of South Africans.”
Issued by Ellis Mnyandu, Spokesperson, DPE, 15 February 2024
