The electricity supply to Pniel, Johannesdal and Boschendal will be turned off between 9:00 and 15:00 on 15, 16 and 17 August to allow for maintenance and upgrades to the electricity infrastructure within these areas.
This was according to Victor Dyusha, manager of metering, loss control and Dwarsrivier operations for Stellenbosch Municipality.
The upgrades to electricity infrastructure in Pniel, Johannesdal and Boschendal on 15, 16 and 17 August, will not impact customers who receive their electricity directly from Eskom. This was according to Victor Dyusha, manager of metering, loss control and Dwarsrivier operations for Stellenbosch Municipality. INFOGRAPHIC: Daniel Roodt
Upgrades to infrastructure
The upgrades and maintenance will be run by Stellenbosch Municipality’s engineering services, said Dyusha. Eskom will not be involved as the switch-off pertains to the municipality’s electricity infrastructure, stated Dyusha.
The operation is part of an ongoing initiative led by the municipality to convert all electrical infrastructure from a radial feed, to a ring feed, said Dyusha.
The current system providing electricity to Pniel, Johannesdal and Boschendal is a radial feed, meaning that the entire power supply to the area must be switched off to conduct maintenance, said Dyusha.
A ring feed makes maintenance easier, as individual sections can be switched off when repairs need to be made, explained Dyusha.
Any changes or delays as to when the electricity supply will be reinstated to Pniel, Johannesdal and Boschendal, during the upgrades on 15, 16 and 17 August, will be communicated to residents. This was according to Victor Dyusha, manager of metering, loss control and Dwarsrivier operations for Stellenbosch Municipality. INFOGRAPHIC: Daniel Roodt
Impact on businesses
The power outages will have a significant impact on businesses and residents in the area, said Benita Cyster, owner of Lumley’s Place Guesthouse, a guesthouse in Pniel.
The guesthouse records fewer reservations when the power is out for such extended periods of time, said Cyster.
There is a lot of work to be done to upgrade the electricity infrastructure in Pniel, Johannesdal and Boschendal, as the network is unstable. This is why the upgrades will span three days, on 15, 16 and 17 August, said Victor Dyusha, manager of metering, loss control and Dwarsrivier operations for Stellenbosch Municipality. PHOTO: Daniel Roodt
The scheduled maintenance will result in a significant loss of profit for Johannesdal 1207, an event venue in Johannesdal. This was according to Chris Willemse, the venue manager at Johannesdal.
The venue has a generator, but it costs approximately R5 000 per day to run, stated Willemse.
The outage will also affect people who work from home in the area and who do not have additional power sources, stated Cyster.