Entry to the offices of City Power in Johannesburg was blockaded on Tuesday by a group of disgruntled contractors demanding payment for work completed, disrupting the utility’s operations.
The protesters, who prevented employees from entering the building, are contractors and small-to-medium enterprises (SMMEs) who say they have not been paid for their work on a City Power electrification project.
One of the protesters, Sbu Ndlovu, confirmed the demonstration was a direct result of non-payment for services rendered.
The protest action highlights a deepening financial crisis at the power utility. A spokesperson for City Power acknowledged the issue, revealing that the entity is facing a massive backlog in contractor payments.
“The protest is something that has been going on for some few months now because of, among other issues, the non-payment of these contractors,” the spokesperson stated. “And it’s not the only contractors that haven’t been paid in a while. So we’re sitting at about 1.2 to 2 billion rand in a backlog in terms of the payments of the contractors.”
The spokesperson indicated that this financial shortfall is hindering City Power’s operational responsibilities and traced the problem back to its funding structure. “We get our funding or budget monthly from the city as the shareholder, and as such, we haven’t really been getting a sufficient amount to basically deal with some of the operational issues, including the payment of the contractors,” the spokesperson explained.
City Power has communicated to the contractors that payment will be made whenever funds are available. The spokesperson expressed awareness of the severe impact the delays are having, noting that some SMMEs are on the verge of collapse and individuals are struggling to sustain their livelihoods.
“We are aware of that problem and we are basically working with the main contractor, with the department of housing, and also with the local leadership including the counselor so that we can be able to deal with this issue once and for all,” the spokesperson said.
The electrification project in question is located in Vlakfontein in Region G.
