The City of Tshwane is resuscitating its power-generating capacity to meet the increased demand it will be obliged to meet with the completion of a R2-billion housing development programme that will yield 122000 homes in the next 12 months.
The Gauteng government will build 37000 houses, the city 45 000 and the private sector 40000.
The city will sell assets, including properties that do not generate revenue and unused land, to raise money for housing.
These housing developments will push the demand for electricity to an all-time high for Tshwane - which is still grappling with debt of R6.5-billion.
Last year the city started cutting power to customers who had not paid for municipal services, including embassies, government departments and municipal offices.
Two coal-fired power stations, Pretoria West and Rooiwal, are to be revitalised to produce at full capacity, Tshwane mayor Kgosientso Ramokgopa said in Centurion yesterday.
He said the two plants were operating at only 15% of their design capacity.
Ramokgopa said about a dozen companies have shown interest in running the power stations. An appointment would be made by November, he said, and surplus power would be fed into the national electricity supply grid.
Ramokgopa has been appointed to lead a team to investigate new ways of meeting Gauteng's energy needs. It will focus on demand-reduction and explore ways of increasing regional generating capacity.
The mayor warned the Economic Freedom Fighters that the city would fight land invaders.
"All the land the EFF wants to invade we have earmarked for people to move to ... they are undermining the poor," he said.
- The council has approved the construction of a new venue for its meetings at a cost of R1.2-billion.
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