Business

Joburg warns defaulters: pay up or lose your electricity meters

Published

3 hours ago

September 24, 2025

Chiraag

City of Joburg electricity crackdown, meter removal threat, Project Lokisa Johannesburg, unpaid bills R1 billion, Joburg households disconnection, Eskom and Joburg debt, Joburg ETC

A billion-rand problem

The City of Joburg is taking a hard line against residents who have ignored their municipal bills. This week the municipality revealed that more than 1,300 households could soon lose access to electricity as part of a credit control drive under Project Lokisa. The targeted customers collectively owe the city over R1 billion.

Officials are threatening not just disconnection but the complete removal of electricity infrastructure, including cables and meters. For residents already in the red, this could mean starting from scratch if they ever wish to be reconnected.

What a level 3 disconnection means

Kgamanyane Maphologela, the city’s spokesperson for communications and stakeholder engagement, confirmed that these households have already been served with level 3 disconnection notices. This is considered the final warning after multiple reminders, service cut-offs, and pre-termination notices have been ignored.

Level 3 action involves stripping properties of their physical electricity connections. Should residents want power restored, they would need to reapply as if they were brand-new customers.

The city says these extreme steps are only used when people refuse to settle or make payment arrangements and then resort to illegal reconnections, which amounts to electricity theft.

The bigger picture: billions in unpaid bills

Joburg’s crackdown is part of a wider battle with non-payment. Across the metro, households, businesses, government departments, and even state-owned entities have racked up debts of over R60 billion.

The problem is not confined to poorer communities. Affluent suburbs with multi-million-rand homes have also been flagged for tampering with meters and bypassing systems. In some cases, wealthy households are among the worst defaulters.

The irony is that while the city struggles to collect billions, it is itself billions in arrears to Eskom and other utilities. That financial strain makes the push for payment even more urgent.

Project Lokisa’s hard edge

Launched in June 2025, Project Lokisa was designed to claw back debt from the city’s biggest offenders. Along with physical disconnections, one of its measures requires property owners to settle debts before a sale can go through. Clearance certificates are now tied to the settlement of outstanding bills, with amounts deducted from sale proceeds if necessary.

By targeting high-value properties, large commercial users, and state entities, the city hopes to tackle debt at the top end while also sending a message to ordinary residents that non-payment will no longer be tolerated.

The warning to residents

The city is urging anyone behind on payments to act now. Customers are advised to settle their accounts immediately or visit a revenue customer service centre to arrange repayment plans. Failure to do so could result in legal action in addition to disconnection.

For many Joburgers, the message is clear: electricity is no longer something you can dodge paying for without consequences. With infrastructure on the line, the city is determined to turn its warnings into action.