{
  "id": 12935514,
  "title": "POWER CRISIS: Property owners spend millions on diesel as Joburg CBD power outages drive away tenants",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/power-crisis-property-owners-spend-millions-on-diesel-as-joburg-cbd",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-08T19:32:10.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Daily Maverick",
    "slug": "daily-maverick",
    "url": "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-10-08-property-owners-spend-millions-on-diesel-as-joburg-cbd-power-outages-drive-away-tenants/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Johannesburg's electricity crisis is putting the years of regeneration work in the inner city at risk. Property owners in the CBD are facing mounting frustration as repeated power outages leave buildings and businesses without electricity and water for extended periods. The Johannesburg Property Owners and Managers Association (JPOMA) has warned that these power failures are jeopardizing the investment and renovation efforts in the inner city.\n\nProperty owners have experienced outages totaling around 17 days, with some enduring power cuts for days only to see the electricity restored hours later. JPOMA's executive head, Angela Rivers, has noted that property owners who have invested heavily in renovating older CBD buildings are now frustrated by the prolonged power and water failures that are undermining their efforts.\n\nThe costs of keeping buildings operational have skyrocketed. One member reported spending R1.115-million on diesel over two months across three residential buildings, while another incurred R2.5-million in generator expenses over 14 days. Another property owner spent R200,000 on diesel and R10,000 every two days on water, with potential additional costs of R15,000 every two days if their generator ran continuously. This expenditure does not guarantee that tenants will have power in their homes, as many generators are used primarily to keep lifts, common-area lighting, and water pumps running.\n\nThe electricity and water failures have led to a significant increase in vacancy rates among affected property owners. Vacancy levels have risen from about 3% to 20% over two months, with one building losing 20 tenants in a single month. The crisis is also creating dangerous situations for building managers, with some tenants threatening violence and others storming reception areas.\n\nTenants are leaving the affected buildings as the disruption continues. Property owners have reported rental boycotts, lease terminations, and tenants moving out due to the ongoing issues. Alan Tait of Ithemba Property, which owns 16 buildings in the CBD, has reported that most of its buildings have been without electricity for weeks, forcing the company to install generators for essential services and providing gas stoves and freezers to help tenants.\n\nTait expressed concern over the exorbitant costs of diesel and gas, as well as the risk to his staff's safety. City Power has reportedly discussed underlying problems with property owners, including ageing infrastructure, previous fire damage, temporary supply arrangements, reduced backup capacity, and theft and security challenges.",
  "summary": "Johannesburg’s electricity crisis is increasingly threatening years of work to regenerate the inner city.",
  "key_points": [
    "Johannesburg's electricity crisis risks recent inner-city regeneration efforts.",
    "Property owners spent millions on diesel and generators to maintain operations.",
    "Vacancy rates surged from 3% to 20% as tenants flee power disruptions."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}