The Department of Public Works and Infrastructure would like to provide context on the directive given by Deputy Judge President Sutherland on Thursday, 12 January 2023.

We are unable to comment on other matters raised but we would like to indicate that the generators that have been provided by the DPWI are reliable and they work accordingly. The generators that are currently there are adequate and the only problem that arises is the issue of fuel. Regarding the issue of the Johannesburg High Court, DPWI was only informed of the problem on Friday, 13 January 2023 that the fuel was low. There was nothing that the Department could do about that as client Departments are responsible for buying consumables and ensuring that generators do not run out of fuel. We as the Department are responsible for the installation, maintenance and fixing of generators.

Generators may heat up and become inadequate due to the long periods that they are expected to run during different stages of load-shedding. The DPWI is now advising clients to consider other sources of energy such as solar power as a back up to generators. These interventions would lessen the risk of overheating of generators and excessive fuel costs.

In this case of the Johannesburg High Court, the client failed to procure diesel timeously. In the meantime, the DPWI has placed a technician on site so they may deal with any issues that may arise with the generators as quickly as possible. We also suggest that our client has a dedicated team to keep a close eye on the availability and procurement of fuel stock.

All other requests for generators in courts are always implemented and we are not aware of any generator problems elsewhere.

Source: Government of South Africa