Residents of Etkenvini city faced an inability to purchase electricity tokens through banking apps, retail stores, and mobile platforms due to a technical failure that disrupted the municipality's external sales system on Sunday.
This outage occurred against a backdrop of falling temperatures across Durban, leaving households without electricity. The Etkenvini Municipality stated in a release that customers could not purchase prepaid tokens via banking applications, retail outlets, or mobile vending machines.
The statement indicated that the city's department of energy and electricity had informed the public about technical difficulties with the external prepayment system due to a technical interruption. Investigations revealed that the problem was linked to the failure of an internet service provider, affecting third-party sales channels.
Consequently, residents were unable to buy tokens through banking apps, retail stores, or any other mobile devices. Initially, the city advised residents to purchase tokens at the Rotunda Customer Service Centre, also known as the Electricity Headquarters, located at 1 Jelf Taylor Crescent, Stamford Hill, between 13:30 and 19:00. However, buyers were warned that only cash would be accepted at this center.
By Monday morning, the municipality announced that work to restore the external sales system was ongoing, and the number of customer service centers where electricity could be purchased had been expanded. These centers include: the Electricity Headquarters (1 Jelf Taylor Crescent, Rotunda); Bester Customer Service Centre (20 Ntuzuma Access Road, KwaMashu/Bester); Isipingo Customer Service Centre (3 Police Station Road, Isipingo); Pinetown Customer Service Centre (60 Kings Road, Pinetown); Umhlanga Customer Service Centre (15 Twilight Drive, Umhlanga) and Queensburgh Customer Service Centre (3 Rycroft Road, off Main Road, Queensburgh, near Metro Police).
The municipality apologized to customers for the inconvenience caused and thanked them for their understanding while troubleshooting continued. This failure prompted residents to turn to social media to share their experiences and warn others about the issue.
In a TikTok video, a woman identifying herself as Nurse Ally filmed a report from the Durban Electricity Department customer service centre on Jelf Taylor Crescent. She explained that due to a network problem, residents could not buy electricity online or at regular retail points, and strongly urged those needing tokens to come to the center in person with cash.
Nurse Ally stated: 'I am here, at the Durban Electricity Department on Jelf Taylor Crescent, in the customer service section. Guys, you need to bring cash. The electricity problem is huge, and it is not a scheduled outage.' She clarified that purchasing through banking apps or major retail chains like Checkers and Pick n Pay was impossible. The only place to buy electricity was the Durban Electricity Department on Jelf Taylor Crescent, and payment required cash.
Nurse Ally then directed the camera towards the parking area and the customer service building, showing people arriving at the center to buy tokens. She noted that the queues were moving quite quickly despite the large number of arriving residents. 'They close at 7 PM. Today is Sunday. And we still have people coming here to buy their electricity,' she said.
For residents dependent on prepaid electricity, the technical failure created additional strain, especially for households that usually purchase electricity electronically or at nearby shops weekly. The city stated that updates on the restoration of the external sales system would be published on official communication platforms as they became available. In the meantime, residents needing tokens are advised to visit one of the designated customer service centers and ensure they have cash for payment.
