In a move aimed at easing the strain on Johannesburg’s prepaid meter customers, City Power has extended the deadline for converting non-vending meters to November 30, 2024. This decision comes after an overwhelming response from customers who rushed to service delivery centres (SDCs) before the original cut-off date of November 24, 2024.
City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena confirmed the extension, noting that many customers had already sought assistance in the past week, leading to long queues at the SDCs. “We have pre-generated key change tokens for those outstanding non-vending customers. This will allow us to continue helping with the conversion process beyond Sunday’s initial deadline,” Mangena explained. “We’ve deployed additional teams to gather customer information from those still waiting in line.”
To further ease the process, City Power will arrange for technicians to visit homes to install new meters or replace tampered meters free of charge, ensuring that no one is left behind. “For customers at home, there’s no need to rush to the SDCs,” Mangena reassured. “Our teams will come to you.”
The power utility has also ensured that key change tokens, which are required to convert meters from KRN1 to KRN2, will remain accessible via municipal vending machines until May 31, 2025. This grace period will give customers more time to complete the necessary upgrades. “Even though the cut-off date for upgrading the metering code was originally set for November 24, customers can still access the key change tokens well into next year,” Mangena said. This extension also covers those who may have lost their previously received tokens before entering them into their meters.
However, City Power also issued a crucial warning: unconverted meters will stop loading electricity units once the original deadline passes, but the extended period allows customers to visit the SDCs and obtain new tokens for meter conversion.
