Eskom illegal connections crackdown

Police Minister Senzo Mchunu revealed that 1,111 persons have been arrested and prosecuted for illegal electricity connections during the 2022/23 financial year.

Mchunu said this in response to a Parliamentary question from the EFF’s Nqobile Matilda Mhlongo.

This comes in light of Eskom losing R5.6 billion due to illegal connections and related criminal activities during the 2022/23 financial year.

Illegal connections have plagued Eskom for years. They occur when individuals or groups bypass the official electricity supply network to access power without authorization or payment. 

This often involves tampering with infrastructure such as transformers, meters, or distribution lines.

Illegal connections contribute to non-technical losses in Eskom’s revenue, as the electricity consumed through these means is neither billed nor paid for. 

In June 2023, Eskom’s senior manager for maintenance and operations, Mashangu Xivambu, revealed that Eskom lost over R22 billion from non-technical issues.

“Eskom is losing a lot of money that we were supposed to use to maintain our plants, making sure we create an infrastructure that will ensure people have reliable electricity,” Xivambu told BusinessDay.

He added that illegal connections cause network faults, and customers switched off during load-shedding suffer unscheduled outages. 

However, illegal connections also lead to operational challenges for the utility.

Illegal connections overload the grid, especially in areas where infrastructure is not designed to handle the additional demand. 

They add unforeseen demand for electricity, making Eskom’s job managing the grid more complex than it needs to be. 

This leads to frequent power outages, equipment damage, and increased maintenance costs for Eskom.

In 2023, when load-shedding was at its peak, Xivambu further revealed that illegal connections to Eskom’s grid caused two stages of load-shedding due to additional demand and damage to infrastructure. 

“Customers will be off because we have network faults generated by these illegal connections. The connections are not properly done, not protected, and as a result, the network trips,” he explained.

Therefore, Eskom has been cracking down on illegal connections over the past year, which has revealed the sheer scale of illegal connection networks in the country.

In December this year, the utility announced a collaborative operation involving Eskom Gauteng Distribution Security, the South African Police Service (SAPS), City Power and Eskom-contracted security personnel uncovered a large-scale illegal electricity operation.

The operation was uncovered during a raid at three houses located on a farm, which was heavily guarded, in Leeupoort near Fochville in Gauteng.

“Intelligence investigations uncovered that stolen electrical equipment was being used to supply electricity illegally to nearby informal settlements in exchange for payment,” Eskom said. 

“Over 600 informal households were illegally connected to electricity provided by the farmer. This operation has led to an estimated financial loss of more than R6.6 million for Eskom.”

“During the raid, authorities recovered critical infrastructure, including two transformers and 150 meter boxes belonging to City Power and Eskom.”

Eskom said it has been investigating the case since 2018, with the property being disconnected multiple times. 

However, the farmer repeatedly reconnected the power supply. Eskom confirmed that the affected area has been disconnected.

“Tampering with or damaging critical infrastructure is a criminal offence under the Criminal Matters Amendment Act, with penalties of up to 30 years’ imprisonment,” the utility warned. 

“Such activities disrupt essential services, pose serious safety risks, and undermine the sustainability of the electricity network.”