DURBAN - The uMhlathuze Local Municipality gets the ball rolling on its quest to deal with its electricity problems.
On Monday morning, councillor Christo Botha provided feedback following an electrical and energy portfolio meeting last Thursday.
Botha said, firstly, an oversight visit to the substations would be organised this week. The mayor, deputy mayor, speaker, other senior officials and industry experts would be part of the team.
Secondly, a full assessment report on the Electricity Master Plan was requested to enable the city to determine why recommendations were not implemented.
Thirdly, a full assessment was requested on the Security Risk Report to determine why recommendations were not implemented.
Lastly, consequence management would deal with failures.
Following the portfolio meeting, Botha said the city’s electricity problems were of epic proportions.
“We are 1mm away from a total implosion of the electrical grid. The shocking condition of our electricity sub-stations can not be described in words,” Botha said.
That was after he completed his site visit to all 12 electrical substations and said what he found was “beyond shocking and totally unacceptable”, and consequence management would follow.
Botha said he studied the security risk report as well as the Electricity Master Plan.
He said he handed his conclusions to a local electrical expert and properly qualified electrical engineer, who was fully acquainted with the city's electrical grid, for his advice, and he confirmed his concerns.
He also said he requested him to give him a working understanding of how the Richards Bay part of the grid works. “Studying the reports, visiting the sub-stations, seeking his advice and getting an understanding of how the grid works, have put me in a position to fully understand the reality of the problems they were facing.
“The new leadership did not create the mess we now have to sort out. But we are focused on finding solutions under the leadership of mayor Xolani Ngwezi. Improving service delivery to our residents, and ensuring responsible spending of taxpayers money, are our main focus,” Botha said.
Over the weekend, Botha provided a layman’s explanation on how the Richards Bay electrical grid worked.
Some of the points he made were that poor maintenance and delayed replacement of critical components are two major reasons for transformer failures. Another reason is when transformers are overloaded and the protection systems fail (lack of maintenance).
The next important aspect of power supply is the quality of supply. An unstable supply/voltage could damage equipment, hence the importance of a stable and reliable network that has as few faults/trips as possible.
“We are currently dealing with a crisis not created by the new leadership, and we are doing our best to find quick solutions. To restore the entire electrical grid to an acceptable industry standard will not happen overnight. There simply isn't a quick fix for a situation like this, but rest assured that we are committed and focussed on achieving just that within a realistic time frame,” Botha said.
Daily News