City Power is planning maintenance at the James Crescent Switching Station on Thursday, April 10th, 2025. This will cause parts of Pretoria to be without power for the majority of the day.
Residents and businesses have been urged to plan ahead for an eight-hour power outage that is scheduled to begin at 09h00 and end at 17h00. City Power is carrying out maintenance in region A to increase the reliability of its infrastructure. This includes key areas around Pretoria.
Why Power Outages Happen
City Power confirmed that there was an outage via an official notice dated 18 March 2025. The notice stated that maintenance is needed to improve grid stability and support long-term services. The James Crescent Switching Station is crucial in the distribution of power to Pretoria, surrounding industrial and residential areas and a large section of Pretoria.
The utility stated that “this interruption is part our ongoing efforts to maintain and upgrade our network to ensure we continue to deliver reliable electricity to our clients.”.
What areas in Pretoria will be affected?
Pretoria’s 8-hour power cut will affect both residential areas and commercial districts, including Old Pretoria as well as the surrounding business districts. List includes:
- James Crescent
- Airport (Parts Old Pretoria).
- Famous Brands
- Mondi
- SBV
- Tonetti
- Moritz
- Cynthia Court
- Morkel Close
- Lourens
- North Road
- Richards Drive
- Boulders
Residents are advised to prepare in advance for the possibility of a complete power outage.
What should you do to prepare?
City Power advises all customers to always treat all electrical points like they are live. The power may be restored sooner than expected, depending on the speed at which maintenance is completed.
Here are some practical tips on how to manage the Pretoria power outage of 8 hours:
For Households
- Charge your mobile devices and power banks the night before.
- Open your refrigerator and freezer only to store food.
- Unplug electronic devices to avoid damage caused by power surges.
- Light up with a flashlight, batteries and candles.
Businesses:
- Inform staff and customers about any changes in operations.
- Back up digital files andthe system in the event of an unexpected shutdown.
- Check the fuel supply and test backup generators.
- Replan energy-intensive tasks outside of the affected window.
City Power Contact Information
City Power’s Customer Contact Centre is ready to assist you if you have any questions or require further assistance in relation to the outage.
- Call Centre : (011) 490 7484
- Toll-Free Line: 0800 202 925
- Website: www.citypower.co.za
Pretoria to push for grid reliability
This power outage may be an inconvenience, but it is part of a larger plan to improve grid resilience in Pretoria. The James Crescent Switching Station Upgrade is one of many projects to modernise Gauteng’s Electrical Infrastructure.
City Power can avoid serious problems in the future by performing preventative maintenance. This also helps to support economic growth, as it ensures that Pretoria’s businesses and communities have a more reliable power supply over the long term.
The Pretoria eight-hour power outage that took place on 10 April is likely to disrupt your daily routine, but this is a necessary measure for maintaining the energy grid of the city. Residents and businesses should plan ahead and keep informed.
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