An industry webinar hosted by the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers has highlighted a gap in South Africas standards framework that may be limiting the adoption of cable technologies designed to reduce theft.
Presenting during the session, Aberdare Cables electrical engineering practitioner Donemore Torerwa said copper theft remains a significant challenge for the electricity sector with Eskom losing an estimated R5 billion-R7 billion annually and 1 121 km of cable reported stolen in the 2023 financial year.
The losses, he said, affect service delivery, municipal revenues and public safety with outages impacting hospitals, businesses and households.
