KwaZulu-Natal Business 2016-17 edition

OVERVIEW
Water
New dams and pipelines are under construction in KwaZulu-Natal.
South Africa is a water-scarce country and in early 2016 the
drought in most parts of the country had reached serious
proportions.
This problem is made worse by the fact that a lot of water
is lost through leaky pipes and inefficient metering. According to Water
Wheel magazine (December 2014), 37% of water delivered to the nation's
municipalities is lost. This challenge presents an opportunity for
companies who could solve the problems, for example by providing
better pipes, connections and smart metering.
In September 2015 the city of Durban lost more than 40% of its water,
despite water restrictions being imposed in the northern parts of the city.
The Mercury reported that the losses amounted to R602.6-million per year.
A related problem concerns a shortage of engineers, with the national
Department of Water and Sanitation importing Cuban engineers to assist
in the short term. A local solution was put in place in September 2015
when the first group of young people started training to become Water
Agents, Plumbers and Artisans. The goal for the first phase is to train
15 000 young people.
Umgeni Water, the province’s biggest water utility, has launched the
Adopt-a-River Project, which aims to keep rivers clean, raise awareness
and create jobs. On the Ncandu River that runs through Newcastle, 49
people received training in various skills such as first aid, herbicide application
and alien plant identification. One person received a bursary
from the national department to study at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
Purification, desalination, water-leakage management and wastewater
treatment are some of the issues facing South Africans, and experienced
international companies are showing an interest in the country. American
companies with a presence in South Africa include the Hach Corporation,
Harvard Corporation, Nalco and the Adel Wiggins Group.
In 2015 the Danish government signed an agreement to help the
South African government with water management and water efficiency.
Companies such as smart-meter specialists Kamstrup are already active
in the country.
Infrastructure
The first phase of the Spring Grove Dam in the Mooi River area has
been completed on schedule and has increased water supplies in the
Umgeni River catchment area.
SECTOR HIGHLIGHTS
The Tugela Bulk Water
Scheme will supply water to
the North Coast.
• Phase One of the Spring
Grove Dam is complete.
• Smart metering could
reduce the huge water
losses being experienced
by municipalities.
• Umgeni Water has
launched the Adopt-a-
River Project.
Spring Grove takes to five
the number of dams in the
Mooi-Mgeni system (including
the Midmar, Albert Falls, Nagle
and Inanda dams), which serve
more than five-million people
in Durban, Pietermaritzburg and
their surrounding towns. When
Spring Grove is complete, the
total system yield will rise to
394-million m 3 /year.
A new dam is being built at
Smithfield and the wall of the
Hazelmere Dam is being raised to
increase capacity. Unfortunately,
levels in 2015 and 2016 dropped
to alarming levels in the latter
dam, but the larger dam will be
necessary when the rains come
again.
Construction of the new
Waterloo reservoir near the
King Shaka International Airport
(and serving this northern area)
was completed in late 2011.
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