The City of Cape Town’s electricity teams connected more than 400 homes to the electricity grid in Masiphumelele. In March this year, the first 109 homes switched on their lights for the very first time.

Today, the City's Mayoral Committee Member for Energy, Councillor Beverley van Reenen, Portfolio Committee Chairperson for Human Settlements, Councillor Anda Ntsodo and City officials celebrated with residents as their homes were connected to the electricity grid. The City's Electricity Generation and Distribution Department completed more than 400 connections, which included 271 new connections and 163 reconnections. An additional 15 connections will be completed by the end of July.

'Our teams have made steady progress and we are pleased to switch on more than 400 homes today. This R2,6 million project will immediately improve the living conditions of residents in the area and it will open the doors of learning for students who no longer need to study by candle or lamp light. The City thanks all teams who have worked tirelessly to complete this project on schedule.

'We ask residents to keep their eyes on City electricity infrastructure and to report any tampering and illegal connections. Any suspicious activities may be reported to the South African Police Service (SAPS) or to the City. We continue to see a significant increase in vandalism and damage of City electrical infrastructure in some areas and we encourage residents to help us by reporting these actions to the authorities,' said Councillor van Reenen.

In City-supplied areas and on City-owned land, almost all informal settlements in the metro have been connected to electricity, where it has been possible to do so.

Source: City Of Cape Town