Update on Water Supply Challenges Affecting Nelson Mandela Bay.
Published: March 03, 2026<< BACK TO NEWS
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The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality wishes to inform residents that the water supply situation has not shown significant improvement over the past weekend, following electricity related disruptions experienced at the Motherwell and Nooitgedagt systems last week.
Recent site inspections conducted by municipal technical teams indicate that the Nooitgedagt Water Treatment Works is currently unable to operate at full capacity. This is due to highly turbid (muddy) raw water being received from the Scheepersvlakte Balancing Dam, which was caused by rainfall runoff from the upper reaches of the Darlington Dam.
While water turbidity levels have improved from over 400 NTU to approximately 200 NTU, they remain above the normal average of 100 NTU. As a result, two sedimentation lanes at the Nooitgedagt Water Treatment Works have been temporarily taken out of operation to allow for desludging over a two-day period. The remaining lanes will undergo the same process in phases.
As each sedimentation lane is cleaned and brought back into operation, water production is expected to increase gradually. This will enable improved pumping capacity from the eastern system to the western areas, which have been the most negatively affected by the recent water shortages.
Electricity supply in the Motherwell area is expected to stabilise following the completion of ongoing infrastructure work by the Electricity and Energy Directorate.
In addition, the planned electricity shutdown at the Nooitgedagt facility by Eskom, which was scheduled for this week, has been postponed to April 2026. This postponement will allow sufficient time for critical maintenance to be undertaken and for the system to be fully replenished ahead of the planned shutdown.
The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality sincerely apologises for the inconvenience experienced by residents and businesses and assures the public that every effort is being made to accelerate system recovery and restore stable water supply as quickly as possible.
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