Northern KwaZulu-Natal, specifically the Utrecht and Ladysmith areas, are receiving intense focus to improve household electricity supply.
On Wednesday, 10 May 2023, eMadlangeni (Utrecht) Municipality Mayor, Cllr M Buthelezi, announced the delivery of a ring feeder cable to cover Utrecht and neighbouring areas.
“This cable will help improve the electricity supply from substations to transformer stations. This comes after numerous complaints from the community followed by a Council resolution to address poor electricity infrastructure, long power outages which has troubled the local community and businesses for over four years,” said the Municipality’s Communications Unit.
Cllr Buthelezi expressed his appreciation to the Council for the collective effort in addressing this challenge and for the achievement of this milestone.
Despite financial constraints, the eMadlangeni Municipality had to confront the situation and find means to address it during the adjustment budget.
In addition, the Alfred Duma (Ladysmith) Municipality Mayor, Cllr Zama Sibisi introduced a contractor to install and connect electricity for 242 households in Roosboom Ladysmith.
“The introduced contractor, Messrs R Busisiwe (Pty) Ltd will install and connect electricity to 242 households in Roosboom that do not have electricity. The project as per the contractor will have job opportunities for people locally and that will leave the community acquired skills and certificate,” said the Municipality’s Communications Unit.
Addressing the residents, Mayor Sibisi stated, “As the municipality, we understand the frustration of not having electricity, especially in this season of winter, but we must also warn people that in the cases of electricity fault residents are the cause by conducting illegal connections.” He further requested residents to cooperate with the contractor so that the project can be finished well without any disputes or hiccups.
The efforts of the Ladysmith and Utrecht Municipalities to address the electricity supply issue have been praised.
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