Eskom raises concerns over Delft infrastructure theft and vandalism

Eskom in the Western Cape has raised concerns over the alarming increase in vandalism and theft incidents targeting Eskom infrastructure in Delft.

In a statement, the power utility says it is currently addressing a fault restoration backlog across parts of the Cape Metropole, with Delft and Khayelitsha among the areas most affected.

To accelerate restoration efforts and reduce outage durations, Eskom says it has recently deployed additional technical resources and response teams to the affected areas.

“Our teams are working around the clock to restore electricity supply safely and as quickly as possible.”

It has, however, been noted that the alarming increase in vandalism and theft incidents targeting Eskom infrastructure in Delft is adding to the restoration challenge.

In recent weeks, several meter kiosks were reportedly deliberately set alight, causing extensive damage and prolonged electricity outages for customers.

“The repeated vandalism of infrastructure is draining critical stock reserves and forcing Eskom into an unsustainable cycle of replacing assets that are repeatedly vandalised.”

Eskom says the repeated destruction and theft of electricity infrastructure place a significant financial burden on the power utility, with substantial costs incurred in repairing and replacing vandalised equipment.

“These criminal acts not only disrupt electricity supply but also divert resources that could otherwise be used to improve service delivery.”

Residents and community leaders have been urged to work with Eskom teams to protect critical electricity infrastructure and report any criminal activity.

It reminded residents that theft, vandalism and illegal electricity connections continue to undermine the reliability of the network and compromise service delivery and negatively impact the lives, safety and livelihoods of thousands of customers.