Rand Water has enough water to meet demand in Gauteng metros and municipalities.
However, the water entity’s CEO, Sipho Mosai, said while Rand Water can meet demand at the moment, its network is under increasing pressure.
Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu made a shocking revelation this week when he said Gauteng metros might run out of water.
Mchunu said the electricity crisis has worsened the situation.
“I think on average the demand for water, factoring in issues of migration and population growth, year on year, we are seeing volume increases of about 2%, which effectively is not a big challenge to meet,” Mosai said.
“If we have a huge demand for water that is more than our peak supply, which is about 5 000-million litres of water per day and it lasts for a long time, it becomes difficult to refill the reservoirs.
“If we don’t fill the reservoirs timeously, then it creates a problem of low head. If you have low head, some areas in Gauteng do struggle to get water timeously.”
On Tuesday, Rand Water said it plans to build 12 reservoirs at the cost of R28-billion in the next five years to ensure water supply to Gauteng metros.
There are currently 60 reservoirs with a storage capacity of 6 100 megalitres daily. This will increase to 72 reservoirs, which will result in a storage capacity of 7 630 megalitres daily.
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