Good day to members of the media and residents of the City of Johannesburg.

The City of Johannesburg has convened this media briefing to provide an update on the ongoing water supply challenges affecting parts of Midrand. These challenges are the result of a series of incidents within the Rand Water bulk supply system over the past week, which have directly impacted Johannesburg Water’s Midrand network.

City Power, together with the City of Johannesburg, is excited to announce the second leg of the Energy Efficiency and Demand Side Management (EEDSM) Schools Competition for 2026. This initiative calls on young minds from public non-fee-paying high schools across Johannesburg to step forward with bold ideas that promote energy efficiency and renewable energy.

The competition forms part of City Power’s ongoing commitment to building a culture of responsible energy use while inspiring the next generation of innovators, problem solvers, and environmental champions.

The City of Johannesburg has become aware of social media messages suggesting that some customers’ municipal payments are not reflecting on their statements.

The City would like to clarify that these claims are incorrect. Payments made through official City channels continue to be processed and reflected on customer accounts.

The Johannesburg Development Agency (JDA) is nearing completion of the Drieziek Recreation Park in Drieziek Extension 3, a flagship public-space project under the City of Johannesburg’s Orange Farm Turnkey Programme.

Scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2026, the development will provide residents with a safe, inclusive recreational facility that promotes active living, social cohesion, and environmental sustainability.

City Power teams are on site at the Siemert Substation, attending to an outage affecting customers in New Doornfontein.

Our investigations confirm that the ground-mounted transformer did not explode. The transformer tripped in response to the explosion, operating as designed to protect itself and the wider electricity network from further damage. This confirms that the protection systems associated with the Siemert Substation functioned correctly.

The Johannesburg Zoo will mark its participation in the global Reverse the Red movement with a dynamic three-day programme from 6 to 8 February 2026, bringing together schools, universities, conservation partners, and the public to champion species recovery and biodiversity action in the heart of the city.

Reverse the Red (RTR) is a coordinated global effort led by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and supported by the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA), of which the Johannesburg Zoo is a member. The campaign aims to halt and reverse the decline of threatened species through measurable, sciencebased collaboration.

City Power is appealing to residents and businesses to play an active role in protecting critical electricity infrastructure following a sustained increase in theft and vandalism incidents recorded during January 2026. These incidents continue to pose a serious risk to power supply stability, public safety and the delivery of essential services across our supply areas.

Since the beginning of January 2026, we have recorded 112 infrastructure-related incidents across City Power’s Service Delivery Centres. The highest number was recorded in Reuven SDC with 26 incidents, followed by Roodepoort SDC with 20, Randburg and Alexandra SDCs with 16 incidents each, Lenasia SDC with 15 incidents, Hursthill SDC with 5, and Midrand SDC with 2 incidents. Of particular concern is the Inner City SDC, which recorded 12 incidents, many of which occurred repeatedly within underground tunnels.

Government acknowledges the significant hardship and disruption experienced by households, businesses, and communities across Gauteng, particularly in the three metros of Johannesburg, Tshwane, and Ekurhuleni, following the motor explosion at Rand Water’s Zuikerbosch Water Treatment Plant on Tuesday, 27 January 2026. We deeply regret the inconvenience, distress, and economic impact caused by low water pressure, temporary outages, and widespread supply interruptions, which were exacerbated by high water consumption during this period.

The City of Johannesburg has intensified its efforts to restore order, enforce compliance, and regulate informal trading in the Midrand Central Business District, following a targeted Informal Trading Blitz focused on long-standing problem areas, particularly around the Midrand Taxi Rank, located opposite Boulders Mall.

The operation forms part of a broader programme to reassert municipal control over public spaces, protect infrastructure, ensure public safety, and create a lawful, fair, and well-regulated informal trading environment. These efforts are being actively led on the ground by the City Manager, Dr Floyd Brink, underscoring the seriousness with which the City is addressing these challenges.