SOUTH AFRICA: a new plant boosts water supply in Gauteng

South Africa’s state-owned Rand Water, which supplies drinking water to more than 16 million people in Gauteng province, parts of Mpumalanga, in the Free State, and in the North West of South Africa, is gradually increasing its production capacity. The company recently completed the first phase of work on its new drinking water plant, located near the Zuikerbosch water treatment plant in Gauteng. At this stage, the plant is supplying 150,000 m³ of drinking water a day, topping up Rand Water’s supply to the local population and industry, which was estimated at 600,000 m3 a day prior to the project.

The second phase of work on the drinking water plant (station B) is already underway, and should increase Rand Water’s production capacity by 450,000 m³ per day by 2024.

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This will increase Rand Water’s daily production capacity to 1.2 million m³ of drinking water, guaranteeing water security for the population. “You can’t have access to water without the appropriate infrastructure”, emphasised Senzo Mchunu, South Africa’s Minister for Water and Sanitation, before congratulating the public water company on its “forward thinking”.

In March 2023, Rand Water also launched the construction of 12 reservoirs to improve water storage by 2028, in order to secure the supply of drinking water to the people of Gauteng. The future facilities, with an expected capacity of 1.53 million m³ of additional water per day, will be located in the suburbs of Meredale, Daleside, Klipfontein, Germiston, Hartebeeshook, Bronberg, Brakpan and Selcourt.

Inès Magoum