Reminder: The public is invited to the George Municipality Thusong outreach in New Dawn Park, Pacaltsdorp with other business and government stakeholders also taking part.
_When: Friday, 10 March 2023
Where: New Dawn Park Area Office, Cnr of Protea Road and Toemalyn Street
Time: 09h00 – 15h00
Issued by George Mun 7 March 2023
Flood wrap of the weekend
Issued by George Municipality on 7 March 2023 for immediate release
Due to the George Municipality’s preparedness and a contingency plan consisting of integrated multi-sectoral and multi-disciplinary services within the organisation, we were well prepared for the heavy rainfall and flooding expected in George and Uniondale areas over the past weekend following the South African Weather Services Level 6 warning received on Friday 3 March. George in general measured approximately 60 mm of rain from Friday, 3 March until Sunday, 5 March. The Municipality implemented measures aimed at disaster prevention, mitigation, and response, after receiving the predicted heavy rainfall and severe thunderstorms from Saturday night to Monday morning.
Uniondale and Haarlem
In Uniondale, 65mm of rainfall was measured from Saturday until Sunday and about 68 mm of rainfall in Haarlem on the same days. Uniondale and Haarlem areas had the most damage with the newly upgraded Uniondale Fire Station that was almost completely flooded despite preventative preparations. Trenches and sandbags were used to attempt to prevent flooding but to no avail. The volume of the downpour was simply too much for the measures that were in place.
A farm in the Kammanassie area was cut off from access due to the Kammanassie River flooding. The resident was unable to pick up an urgent emergency consignment of medication for an epileptic patient and the George Fire Department assisted with the matter due to the emergency. A 4×4 vehicle was used to cross the flooded river and after some water had subsided as well. Several roads were damaged in Haarlem and after the flooding a number of the stormwater drains need to be cleared of debris and which officials have started with.
The roads in Uniondale are extensively damaged by the storm that happened on Sunday, 5 March 2023. The road that was most adversely affected is Uitvlught road as well as Cemetery Road, Laetitia Avenue, Wehmeyer Street, Albert Street, Cathcart Street, Rose Street, Aberdeen Street, Buitenkant Street, Berg Street and Parlement Street. Some stormwater issues were experienced where large amounts of gravel washed into people’s driveways and properties. Officials have started by clearing rocks, stones and sand off the roads.
In Uniondale, 40 callouts were made for formal and informal housing with regard to the supply of gunplas and flood damage, with another 40 callouts in Haarlem. After these families were assisted with most flooding issues and glunplas it was not necessary to evacuate any of their premises.
Preparations in Advance
Our Civil Engineering Stormwater teams checked and cleared roughly 100 drains along 21 Streets in George areas from Friday afternoon till 22h00 and again on Saturday from 08h00 to 22h00. Three teams were put in place to check hotspot areas where flooding problems have occurred previously. During the storm on Sunday, only four complaints came in of people needing assistance with catch pits.
The Disaster management department had to bring in two additional staff members to assist with the call volumes at the Call Centre. Our disaster and fire brigade officials monitored areas such as Hope Street and other areas around George. Sanparks breached the Touwsriver mouth at 15h30 on Monday afternoon. The Corporate Services Directorate had halls on standby to be used if people needed to be evacuated but this wasn’t necessary.
The George Traffic Services remained on standby for the duration of the storm and at least three vehicle accidents were reported on Provincial Roads. Two motor vehicle accidents were reported to the Fire Department on Sunday in Outeniqua Pass and one accident in Kaaimans Pass. The Fire Department received only 7 calls in the George area for assistance with sandbags at residential properties.
Our Human Settlements, Planning and Development Directorate cut gunplas on Friday in preparation for delivery on Saturday and Sunday. Gunplas was delivered to applicants on Saturday for them to place on their roofs in preparation for Sunday’s rain. More critical areas were serviced on Sunday. A total of 138 pieces of gunplas were delivered over the weekend in George,including Uniondale and Haarlem. Pre-preparation and delivery of gunplas before the inclement weather assisted immensely as the teams could attend to the most critical complaints received from the Fire Department. The Directorate continued with the delivery of gunplas after the storm. The Directorate’s maintenance section assisted 14 Rosemoor Units for the Aged with roof leaks and gunplas as well as 10 units where water was leaking through the doors.
George Municipal Manager, Dr. Michele Gratz, had huge praise and thanks to all the officials for their commitment to managing this potential disaster. “I think we did well and our preparations helped in many respects,” Gratz said. She thanked the teams for responding very quickly to potential issues and putting in long hours of hard work. George Executive Mayor Ald Leon van Wyk echoed the many thanks to all the staff and especially the teams on the ground. He said the preparations were excellent and he’s excited about the rainfall that we’ve had.
Video of the Touw Rivermouth being breached.
Our teams cleared the the roads and stormwater drains in Uniondale during the flooding.
Flooding at the Uniondale fire station that was recently refurbished.
Members from the George Fire brigade delivered emergency medicine with a 4×4 vehicle to a farm that was cut off due to the Kammanassie River that was in flood.
Debris lying in the road at Uniondale Poort after the storm.
Stormwater teams drive through Magnolia Street, Groeneweide Park to check and clear stormwater drains.
Check ups was done wat Moeggehuur and Moeggeploeg to make sure people’s homes were not flooded and if they needed gunplas.
Stormwater teams cleared stormwater drains all around George since Friday to be prepaped for any flooding.
*#Eskom Load shedding update: 6 March 2023*
_*Following the failure of five generating units today, Stage 5 loadshedding will be implemented from 16:00 today(Monday) until 05:00 tomorrow, Tuesday, whereafter Stage 4 loadshedding will resume until further notice. Issued by George Municipality on behalf of Eskom*_
*George will be affected as follows:*
Monday 06/03/2023
20:00 – 22:30
Tuesday 07/03/2023
04:00 – 06:30
12:00 – 14:30
20:00 – 22:30
Wednesday 08/03/2023
04:00 – 06:30
12:00 – 14:30
20:00 – 22:30
Thursday 09/03/2023
02:00 – 04:30
10:00 – 12:30
18:00 – 20:30
Friday 10/03/2023
02:00 – 04:30
10:00 – 12:30
18:00 – 20:30
UNIONDALE NOW USES MISGUND LOAD SHEDDING SCHEDULE TEMPORARILY
*As of 3 March 2023, Eskom is feeding Uniondale power supply from a different region.
Uniondale’s loadshedding schedule now falls under Misgund.We advise consumers to consider the George Municipal issued load shedding schedules as the correct version. According to Eskom, this is a temporary arrangement which should only last approximately a week.*
*The load shedding Applications (Apps) that are in circulation may have not been updated about this change and will give incorrect information unintentionally. The George Municipality load shedding schedule remains accurate and reliable.*
*The latest load shedding schedule for Uniondale is as follows:*
Monday 06/03/2023
19:00 – 21:30
Tuesday 07/03/2023
03:00 – 05:30
11:00 – 13:30
19:00 – 21:30
Wednesday 08/03/2023
03:00 – 05:30
11:00 – 13:30
19:00 – 21:30
Thursday 09/03/2023
01:00 – 03:30
09:00 – 11:30
17:00 – 19:30
Friday 10/03/2023
01:00 – 03:30
09:00 – 11:30
17:00 – 19:30
SWITCHING ON AFTER LOADSHEDDING – Not all areas will be switched back on at the same time!
Residents of George must please note that with the extended load-shedding, our Electrotechnical Directorate is no longer able to switch the entire city back on at the same time. Our daily notifiable demand from ESKOM has historically been set at 85MVA and on average George would use between 60 and 80MVA, although the municipality must pay ESKOM for 85MVA.
If the power is returned simultaneously to all areas when load-shedding ends, this creates a massive spike or surge in power with all geysers, freezers/fridges/batteries etc drawing power at the same time. With the extended four-hour load-shedding, the spikes for George are consistently reaching 105 – 112 MVA.
Areas will be switched on in sections, on rotation after Load-shedding.
Eskom has indicated that unless George can reduce the spikes, they will increase our notifiable demand to the highest actual usage level which will in turn increase the purchase cost to the municipality. Consumers are requested to use electricity very sparingly when power returns after load-shedding (especially a 4-hour slot).
The municipality will now in rotation, switch the power on in sections. This means if for example the load-shedding slot is scheduled from 20h00 – 22h30, there is a chance that your area may only come on at 22h45 or 23h00.
Please do not switch high-usage equipment on immediately after Load-shedding.
Consumers are therefore urged to turn off high-usage equipment and where possible to not switch on appliances such as stoves and kettles for at least 30 minutes after load shedding. This will reduce the risk of overload tripping on the network and reduce our current high MVA spikes.
Reporting power outages
Please do not phone the After hours number or the Electrotechnical Department to report that you have no power immediately after Loadshedding is scheduled to be lifted. Please be aware of the rotational switching on, and wait at least 30 minutes before reporting no power. The directorate will be aware if there has been a possible substation trip that needs to be sorted out.
Issued by George Municipal Communications Department
Office of the Municipal Manager
REMINDER: IMPORTANT PREPAID METER SOFTWARE UPDATE (TID Rollover) – Phase 2 will receive a Token to amend software
Issued George Municipality, 9 May 2023
The George Municipality has embarked on a pre-paid electricity metering software update for its approximately 50 000 prepaid consumers quite a while back. The current software will expire in November 2024. This will not only impact George consumers but ALL prepaid meters throughout South Africa. If your meter is not updated before the deadline, you will not be able to recharge your prepaid meter with the new tokens and therefore will not have power.
70% of George Software Updates Completed
George Municipality has already successfully implemented the software update on close to 70% of its prepaid meter base, through the work done by field staff and contractors on-site while doing a meter change, site inspection, and Amp limit roll-out. These teams will continue to go out weekly to do site inspections and Amp limit roll-out.
Final 30% software update will be done by receipt of an extra token
To expedite the software update (TID roll-over) and in order to ensure no consumer is placed at risk of having a non-working meter, the municipality will implement the next phase – key change process – of its TID roll-over implementation plan from March 2023 with the issue of a separate, extra token when you make your next purchase.
Key Change Token
If you do receive a KEY CHANGE Token with your first purchase in March the following is VERY IMPORTANT TO NOTE BEFORE you insert the key change:
Verification or Queries – If you receive an extra token and you are unsure what to do?
Customers may phone the George Municipality on 044 801 9222 or Ontec on 044 873 5474 for verification, for response to queries OR to request that their software is addressed. Please note that all municipal and/or Ontec officials carry identification cards with a photograph and their ID number as well as a copy of a verification letter explaining the purpose for their visit.
For more information on the TID Rollover (software update) please visit the George Municipality’s website to view frequently asked questions (FAQ):
https://www.george.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/TID-ROLLOVER-FAQ-MvH-Afrikaans-1.pdf
https://www.george.gov.za/george-doc-categories/documents/media-documents/other-publications/page/2/
TOKEN IDENTIFIER (TID) ROLLOVER https://www.sts.org.za/tid-rollover SOURCE
The Token Identifier is a 24-bit field, contained in STS compliant tokens, that identifies the date and time of the token generation. It is used to determine if a token has already been used in a payment meter. The TID represents the minutes elapsed since the 1st of January 1993. The incrementing of the 24-bit field means that at some point in time, the TID value will roll over to a zero value.
All STS prepayment meters will be affected by TID roll over on the 24/11/2024. Any tokens generated after this date and utilizing the 24bit TID will be rejected by the meters as being old tokens as the TID value embedded in the token will have reset back to 0.
Issued by George Municipality 28 February 2023
George Municipality has since 23 November 2022 started improving access to homes with steep slopes in Rosedale, Thembalethu and Touwsranten. Further measures to bring relief to several homes which continuously flood in times of heavy downpour include building channels to re-route run off, as well as installing gutters and down pipes to minimise access rainwater into the yards. A total of 64 houses were identified with stormwater problems in the areas mentioned above and to date 23 houses have been completed. A tender for the installation of retaining walls is still in the procurement process.
Captions: Construction in progress improving access to homes with steep slopes in Rosedale, Thembalethu and Touwsranten. Workers are building channels to re-rout run off, installing gutters and down pipes and buffers to bring relief especially during heavy downpours.
First Thursday | Youth Sector
Join us for our next First Thursday session on the 2nd of March.
This session is aimed at the youth, aged 18 – 35. In our session this focus will be the following: engaging with and hearing from you. This will allow us to determine the needs you have around business and activities that will benefit you and the municipality you live in.
The motivation for this specific session comes off the back of a discussion the Mayor Leon Van Wyk had with a young accountant, Des-lie Van Wyk, who started SHIFT Entrepreneurs with his Board of Directors.
This Non Profit Organisation (SHIFT) is a dynamic group of young business people committed to creating a sustainable economy in George by giving young and aspiring entrepreneurs optimal opportunities for growth and success.
At this First Thursday engagement, SHIFT will speak more about what they do and how they plan to positively impact the local George community. We welcome you to make any contributions that can further benefit the community.
Ideally, this is a forum that facilitates interaction between accountants, attorneys, businesspersons, farmers, brokers, etc. However, we are opening up this platform to all of you.
If you are interested, please RSVP via email to supportbusiness@george.gov.za Your RSVP secures your link to this meeting. Provide your name, contact number and email address to supportbusiness@george.gov.za
If you have any further questions or queries, contact Melissa Dreyer at 044 801 9129 .
Details again: When: 2nd March 2023 Platform: MS TEAMS Time: 16:30
Issued by George Mun on behalf of the Road Accident Fund 22 February 2023
The Road Accident Fund (RAF) will take its Mobile Bus Clinic and Driver Wellness Programme to key sites along the Garden Route from Monday 20 February to Friday 24 February in order to reduce accidents caused by driver fatigue and other health related matters.
RAF’s Driver Wellness Programme focuses on long distance truck drivers as well as those who carry a large number of commuters (e.g., taxis, buses etc). The bus will offer free health checks.
Statistics show commercial truck drivers, taxis and buses (commercial and public transport drivers) pose a greater risk and are prone to mass accidents, which is a liability for the RAF. To mitigate this, the RAF facilitated a wellness bus with the necessary equipment to test vitals like high blood pressure, diabetes,
eyesight, etc. The mobile clinic will have a dispensing nurse and an optometrist to prescribe driving glasses on the spot at no cost to the beneficiaries.
This initiative, which has been funded through RAF Corporate Social Responsibility, is in partnership with a Non-Governmental Organisation, the Health Foundation of South Africa (HFSA). HFSA have co-opted
Africa Mobility Solutions for technology and mobility support in partnership with Guud Mobility. The project will create three temporal jobs for the dispensing nurse, optometrist and testing operator.
The bus schedule along the Garden Route is as follows:
Date Location Time
Thursday – 23 February Thembalethu Taxi Rank (George_ 09h00-16h00
Friday – 24 February Mossel Bay Taxi Rank 09h00-16h00
In the unfortunate event of being involved in a motor vehicle accident, a readily responsive RAF Call Centre is reachable at 0860 23 55 23 from Monday to Friday, 07h45 to 16h00. Assistance is available in any of the 11 official languages. The RAF can also be reached through its offices countrywide, details
of which are available on its website on www.raf.co.za.
For additional information and updates, follow the RAF on social media:
@RAF_SA or Facebook @Road Accident Fund
Issued by the Road Accident Fund
URGENT PUBLIC NOTICE: George Fire Brigade Telephone Landlines in Working Order
All telephone landlines for the George Fire Brigade are in working order following mechanical issues with the generator last night.
Fire Control – 044 8016311
Other and After Hours 044 801 6300
Issued 21 February 2023 @ 12h30, George Municipality
PUBLIC NOTICE: IMPORTANT PREPAID METER SOFTWARE UPDATE (TID Rollover) – Phase 2 will receive a Token to amend software
Issued George Municipality, 20 February 2023 for immediate release.
The George Municipality has embarked on a pre-paid electricity metering software update for its approximately 50 000 prepaid consumers quite a while back. The current software will expire in November 2024. This will not only impact George consumers but ALL prepaid meters throughout South Africa. If your meter is not updated before the deadline, you will not be able to recharge your prepaid meter with the new tokens and therefore will not have power.
70% of George Software Updates Completed
George Municipality has already successfully implemented the software update on close to 70% of its prepaid meter base, through the work done by field staff and contractors on-site while doing a meter change, site inspection, and Amp limit roll-out. These teams will continue to go out weekly to do site inspections and Amp limit roll-out.
Final 30% software update will be done by receipt of an extra token
To expedite the software update (TID roll-over) and in order to ensure no consumer is placed at risk of having a non-working meter, the municipality will implement the next phase – key change process – of its TID roll-over implementation plan from March 2023 with the issue of a separate, extra token when you make your next purchase.
Key Change Token
If your prepaid meter software has already been updated during Phase 1, you will NOT receive an extra token with your first purchase in March 2023. If you do receive a KEY CHANGE Token with your first purchase in March the following is VERY IMPORTANT TO NOTE BEFORE you insert the key change:
Verification or Queries – If you receive an extra token and you are unsure what to do?
Customers may phone the George Municipality on 044 801 9222 or Ontec on 044 873 5474 for verification, for response to queries OR to request that their software is addressed. Please note that all municipal and/or Ontec officials carry identification cards with a photograph and their ID number as well as a copy of a verification letter explaining the purpose for their visit.
For more information on the TID Rollover (software update) please visit the George Municipality’s website to view frequently asked questions (FAQ):
https://www.george.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/TID-ROLLOVER-FAQ-MvH-Afrikaans-1.pdf
https://www.george.gov.za/george-doc-categories/documents/media-documents/other-publications/page/2/
TOKEN IDENTIFIER (TID) ROLLOVER https://www.sts.org.za/tid-rollover SOURCE
The Token Identifier is a 24-bit field, contained in STS compliant tokens, that identifies the date and time of the token generation. It is used to determine if a token has already been used in a payment meter. The TID represents the minutes elapsed since the 1st of January 1993. The incrementing of the 24-bit field means that at some point in time, the TID value will roll over to a zero value.
All STS prepayment meters will be affected by TID roll over on the 24/11/2024. Any tokens generated after this date and utilizing the 24bit TID will be rejected by the meters as being old tokens as the TID value embedded in the token will have reset back to 0.
Follow the link to the advert: https://www.george.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GIPTN_George-Herald-Notification-Office-Lease-116_V4-FINAL-COLLAB_FINALupdate-MM-approved.pdf
Good news for library users – A FINE FREE amnesty period for library users has started!
Issued by George Municipality 20 February 2023 for immediate release
George Municipality is happy to announce that all library patrons in our area can now return library books without paying fines during an amnesty period. According to Rachel Williams: Manager: George Libraries, a fine-free amnesty period for public library patrons will be applicable until the Sita Library and Information Management System (SLIMS) is up and running again. Patrons are strongly encouraged to take full advantage of this period to return all overdue books to our libraries.
The SLIMS system managed by SITA has been unavailable to all non-metro libraries across the Western Cape since 15 November 2022. Because of a storage failure, the whole Virtual Machine Operating System collapsed. This system failure had a huge and ongoing impact on the service delivery to all public library users in the Western Cape. Williams said, the recovery period is unknown yet and could take up to 6 months. Please be advised that library services are a function of the WC Provincial Government and therefore, the George Municipality is not able to resolve the current problem.
It should be noted that all public libraries in George and surrounding areas remain open and continue to serve the public. All public libraries make use of the standardised form created to capture issues and returns. The number of books issued per patron is limited until SLIMS is back online. The Impala system cannot be used for the purpose of Inter-Library Loans while SLIMS is unavailable.
New library memberships are accepted at all public libraries and are added to the OverDrive e-book system. All public libraries remain open to the public for in-house use and recreational activities, literacy, outreach, and other programmes as it is not dependent on SLIMS availability. Williams thanked all patrons for their patience and support and would like to assure them of their willingness to be of service to them.
For more information, please phone the libraries at:
Blanco 044 870 7047, Conville 044 801 9320 / 3240 / 3241, George 044 801 9288 / 9289 / 9292 / 9393, Haarlem 044 763 1023 / 078 0863 667, Pacaltsdorp 044 803 9340, Thembalethu 044 803 2260, Touwsranten 044 803 9285 and Uniondale 044 7521 024.
Public Notice: Warning of Damaging Waves
Issued by the South African Weather Service 20 Feb 2023
Warning of damaging waves at George and surrounding areas from 20/02/23 to 21/02/23.
According to the Weather Service, strong to near gale force north-westerly winds (50-60 km/h, gusting 70-80 km/h) are expected between Saldanha Bay and Cape Agulhas ahead of a cold front making landfall on Monday morning, reaching gale force (60-70 km/h, gusting 80-90 km/h) between Gansbaai and Struisbaai. It will become west to south-westerly from late morning, spreading to Plettenberg Bay by the afternoon and will be accompanied by wave heights of 4.0 to 4.5m, reaching 5.0m near Cape Agulhas. The winds will moderate, and waves subside from the west during Tuesday morning.
Impact: Difficulty in navigating at sea due to strong winds and quick successive steep waves can be expected. Small vessels and personal watercraft (e.g., kayaks) are at risk of taking on water and capsizing in a locality as well as localised disruption to beach front activities are possible.
Instruction: Small boats and personal watercraft are advised to stay away from the open sea and seek the shelter of a harbour, river estuary or protected bay. The public, especially the tourists that are not familiar with the coastal routes where built-up of sand are expected are advised to seek alternatives routes beforehand.
George Municipality apologises to residents of Pacaltsdorp for odours coming from the
Outeniqua wastewater treatment works due to the works that cannot work to its full extent during loadshedding
Issued by George Municipality 19 February 2022 for immediate release
George Municipality apologises to residents of Pacaltsdorp for odours coming from the
Outeniqua wastewater treatment works due to the works that cannot function to its full extent during loadshedding.
The Outeniqua wastewater treatment works is being upgraded and the capacity of the works extended to accommodate additional developments. The project is scheduled to be completed in the first quarter of 2023.
Unfortunately, the Eskom loadshedding has had a detrimental effect on the treatment process. The main use of electricity in a treatment process is to provide oxygen for the bacteria. Without oxygen, the bacteria cannot digest the sewage and odours are generated.
The George Municipality received grant funding to install a very large generator to provide electricity for the remainder of the works.
This generator is in the procurement process and will only be installed later in the year.
Currently, the Municipality is looking at installing short-term generator rental options to bridge the delivery period of the permanent solution. Due to the nature and size of the generator required limited options exist.
Loadshedding has placed a major physical and financial burden on the Municipality. The Municipality is working hard and as quickly as possible to overcome the challenges.
*#Eskom #LoadsheddingUpdate In order to create space to replenish the emergency generation reserves, Eskom will implement Stage 6 loadshedding from 20:00 tonight until 05:00 tomorrow morning. Thereafter Stage 4 loadshedding will be implemented until further notice, with the possibility that Stage 6 loadshedding might again be implemented during Sunday night.*
_Issued by George Mun 18 Feb 2023 on behalf of Eskom_
_*George will be affected as follows:*_
Saturday 18/02/2023
22:00 – 00:30 **
Sunday 19/02/2023
00:00 – 02:30 **
06:00 – 08:30
14:00 – 16:30
22:00 – 00:30
Monday 20/02/2023
06:00 – 08:30
14:00 – 16:30
22:00 – 00:30
_*Uniondale will be affected as follows:*_
Saturday 18/02/2023
17:00 – 19:30
20:00 – 21:30
Sunday 19/02/2023
01:00 – 05:30 **
09:00 – 11:30
17:00 – 19:30
Monday 20/02/2023
01:00 – 03:30
09:00 – 11:30
17:00 – 19:30
Public Notice: George Municipality Emergency Services appeal to the public in the greater George area, especially motorists and pedestrians, to be extra careful in the misty weather conditions that we are experiencing currently. Visibility is usually poor during these conditions and we appeal to motorists to drive slowly. Issued by George Municipality 17 February 2023 at 16h00
*Eskom loadshedding stage 4 to be implemented from 16:00 17/02/2023 to 05:00 18/02/2023. Loadshedding stage 3 to be implemented from 05:00 18/02/2023 to 16:00 18/02/2023.
_Issued by George Municipality on behalf of Eskom_
_*George will be affected as follows:*_
Friday 17/02/2023
14:00 – 16:30
22:00 – 00:30
Saturday 18/02/2023
06:00 – 08:30
14:00 – 16:30
22:00 – 00:30
_*Uniondale will be affected as follows:*_
Friday 17/02/2023
17:00 – 19:30
Saturday 18/02/2023
01:00 – 03:30
09:00 – 11:30
17:00 – 19:30
George Municipality warns of ‘discounted’ electricity units being sold online
Issued by George Municipality 17 February 2023 for immediate release
George Residents who choose to purchase prepaid electricity from a scammer cannot hold the Municipality responsible for that money that is wasted.
George Municipality cannot refund residents in these situations. The Municipality or Ontec, the municipality’s service provider, can verify vendors. If you as a resident are unsure of the validity of a vendor, please check with the Municipality or Ontec.
George Municipality’s Electrotechnical Directorate is aware of fraudulent prepaid electricity units being offered online by scammers and warned residents that only units purchased from approved vendors would be accepted by your prepaid meters. Those selling the units are reportedly offering them at a discounted price – this is a scam.
Ontec can assist in vending verification and confirmation. Usually, all Ontec needs is a token indicating the Service provider (that sells prepaid electricity) and the agent number linked to it. If however nothing is available Ontec urges the public to contact their office to verify and if necessary Ontec will inspect the specific point(s).
The telephone number for Ontec is 044 873 5474.
Debt collection and credit control, as well as sales and distribution of Free Basic Electricity (FBE) rely on the vending foundation, and it is essential that we make use of trustworthy partners in this regard.
Here are the approved directly managed vending outlets below:
Albert Motors, 42 Albert Street, George South,
Denneoord Multisave, corner of Wellington and 8th Avenue, Denneoord ,
Engen Eco Stop corner of Witfontein and CJ Langenhoven,Heather Park,
Total Courtenay, 57 Courtenay Street, George Central,
Total Sandkraal, 48A Sandkraal Road, Borcherds,
Caltex Fourway Motors, corner of York and Discovery Streets, Pacaltsdorp Industria,
Poor Man’s Friend, Fiscal Street, Conville,
Shell Kraaibosch, Knysna Road, Kraaibosch,
Caltex The Waves, 2242 South Street, Wilderness East,
Caltex Wilderness, George Road ,Wilderness,
Uniondale Motors, 62 Voortrekker Street, Uniondale
Royal Uniondale, Lang Straat, Lyonsville,Uniondale
Yorkers Superette, 16 York Street, George South
George Municipality, 69 York Street, George
Ontec George, Progress Street, George
Please be advised that Pick n Pay, Shoprite and the Spars are major retail outlets also included to sell prepaid electricity.
Transgressing vendors and even networks have been switched off before as no transgressions will be tolerated. Vendors are also not allowed to sell electrical units at inflated amounts. Small shops or spaza shops may also not sell electricity to residents on the premise that they should buy other goods first.
Residents who struggle with the cost of electricity are encouraged to reach out to the George Municipality to see if they qualify for assistance. You may also phone 044 801 9029 for assistance.
Call Centre for queries regarding prepaid meter issues – 044 801 9218/9229 or after hours to 063 699 5998 and have your Municipal Account Number and Prepaid Meter Number handy. You can also email your query to elec.applications@george.gov.za and or accounts@george.gov.za