Power cuts hit parts of Durban as cold weather strains electricity network
The eThekwini Municipality is implementing load reduction in parts of Durban as repairs continue on a failed supply circuit. Here's where.
Black News 
Residents in parts of Kloof are facing ongoing power cuts after a fault caused one of the two incoming supply circuits at Kloof Substation to fail.
The eThekwini Municipality’s Electricity and Energy Directorate said the substation is currently operating on a single supply circuit while teams work to identify and repair the fault.
The remaining circuit is under additional pressure because of increased electricity demand caused by the cold weather.
As a result, approximately 2MW of electricity will be dropped at a time to keep the transformer operating within safe limits.
Load reduction to rotate every two hours
The municipality said the power cuts will be rotated every two hours until 22:00 tonight.
It may continue tomorrow, depending on network conditions and progress with repairs.
The affected areas are:
- Chelmsfordville
- Forest Hills
- Kloof
- Krantzkloof
- Padfield Park
Residents in these areas could experience periods without electricity as the load reduction is rotated.
Repairs could take longer amid bad weather in Durban
The electricity warning comes as the municipality’s Electricity and Energy Directorate is also dealing with high call volumes at its Contact Centre due to the inclement weather.
The municipality said customers are experiencing longer-than-usual call handling times as more residents report electricity outages and faults.
Customers are therefore encouraged to use the municipality’s digital platforms to log electricity outages and faults rather than relying solely on the Contact Centre.
Once a fault has been logged, it will be queued for investigation and restoration.
Electricity teams are also assessing whether some of the load can be redistributed to other substations in the area.
At the same time, fault-finding and repair work is continuing on the damaged supply circuit.
The municipality said the load reduction is necessary to prevent the remaining transformer from being overloaded while the substation operates with only one incoming supply circuit.
Residents in the affected areas are advised to prepare for the rotating disruptions, particularly during periods of high electricity demand.
