One business lost R1 million in three months due to water outages in South Africa’s richest city

The collapse of Johannesburg’s water supply has left parts of the city without water for multiple consecutive days, resulting in substantial losses for many businesses.

During the past week, residents and businesses in Limbro Park, Modderfontein, Greenstone, Founders View, Lombardy East, and Kew experienced water outages.

In Founders View, one business reported losses exceeding R1 million over the last three months due to recurring water supply interruptions.

Another business said they had been without water for at least 48 hours straight, despite logging numerous calls with Johannesburg Water.

Hundreds of other businesses operating across the City’s commercial and industrial areas have reported experiencing similar issues.

Member of the Gauteng Provincial Legislature, Nico De Jager, said Johannesburg’s water crisis was no longer a mere service delivery failure.

He said it had now become an economic crisis which was threatening jobs and driving away investment from a City where unemployment had already reached 35.9%, according to Stats SA.

“For businesses, a dry tap is not only an inconvenience,” De Jager said. “It costs money. Production stops, and staff cannot work. Businesses must buy and transport water to continue operations.”

“Sanitation becomes impossible. Customers are lost, and operating costs climb. Yet these same businesses are expected to keep paying rates, taxes and service charges to a city that increasingly cannot guarantee them water or electricity.”

Johannesburg’s non-revenue water was estimated at 49.8%, meaning almost one in every two litres of water entering the municipal system generates no revenue.

Much of this is lost due to leaks, burst pipes, and illegal connections, while the City owes Rand Water billions of rands.

De Jager called on Johannesburg Water and the MEC for Infrastructure Development, Jacob Mamabolo, to develop a credible, funded infrastructure recovery plan.

This, he said, required prioritising infrastructure renewal, maintenance, and capital investment over political promises and crisis management.

De Jager said that not enough money was being invested in the replacement and maintenance of Johannesburg’s water infrastructure.

“Johannesburg needs massive, sustained capital investment, accelerated pipe replacement, and preventative maintenance,” De Jager said.

“Compounding the crisis is the lack of reliable communication, leaving residents and businesses unable to plan around prolonged water outages.”