SmilingSouth update on Makhanda water supply – December 2021
Dam levels on 7 December 2021: Howieson’s Poort – 75%; Settlers – below 5% (courtesy Makana Communications Office)
Background
Makhanda’s main western supply dams, Settlers and Howieson’s Poort, have depleted during the past six years, dropping as low as 5% and 10% respectively. At those levels, water can’t be extracted. The much smaller Slaaikraal dams, Jamieson and Milner, which were used to supplement the main supply likewise emptied.
The much smaller Howieson’s Poort Dam fills up quickly but also empties quickly. At times it has filled up enough to supply the Waainek Water Treatment Works, but for the past year, for most of the time, all of Makhanda has been supplied by the much bigger James Kleynhans Water Treatment Works (JKWTW) east of Makhanda.
JKWTW is in turn supplied by Glen Melville Dam – a reservoir filled artificially (not by rain) by water released from the Orange River via the Fish River tunnel.
The average daily water demand in Makhanda is 18 megalitres a day and JKWTW produces just over half that amount, 10ML a day. In order to allow all the intermediate supply reservoirs to fill up and both high-and low-lying areas in the gravity fed system to receive water equitably, the entire supply is opened to consumers only every second day.
Old infrastructure (water supply pipes) results in a lot of water being lost through leaks. Makana Municipality appointed contractors to begin the process of replacing old asbestos pipes in certain areas. That work began earlier this year.
Previous reasons for delays in the upgrade
The James Kleynhans Water Treatment Works is being upgraded to double its production to 20 megalitres a day. An October 2019 Infrastructure Portfolio Committee report outlines the history and status at the time:
Bosch Projects was appointed in September 2013 as the service provider, starting with various scoping and technical reports. In March 2015, the project cost approved by DWS was R101 850 000. With Makana Municipality being placed under administration, Amatola Water was appointed as the implementing agent. Amatola in turn (re-) appointed Bosch in August 2015.
Because of DWS funding requirements, the project is split into four phases:
Phase 1 – Augmentation of JKWTW (R65.6 million)
Phase 2 – Augmentation of JKWTW (R102.7m)
Phase 3 – Upgrading/ refurbishment of existing pump station (R31.5m)
Phase 4 – Upgrading existing water treatment works (R31.5m)
The upgrade was delayed when the subcontractor appointed to complete Phase 1, Winwater, proved unequal to the task. Their contract was terminated and they left the site in June 2017. In line with Amatola’s procurement policy, the next in line was appointed to replace them and so Mamlambo Construction stepped in and began work in September 2017.
According to their contract, the work would be completed within 40 weeks – July 2018. But administrative delays pushed that date further back to March 2019.
But equipment had to be imported and Makana’s water crisis meant it wasn’t possible to shut down the plant for more than eight hours a week. And so the revised completion date became June 2019.
However, the Department of Trade and Industry cancelled the Phase 2 tender because, according to the report, “local content declaration was not allowed to be adjusted or amended post award”. So it was re-advertised in September 2019.
After it was awarded, the revised completion date was September 2021.
Parliament noticed
Earlier this year, Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) grilled officials from the Department of Water and Sanitation, implementing agent Amatola Water and main contractor Bosch Civils on the process involved in awarding the upgrade contracts, and the delays and cost increases that resulted.
SCOPA questioned the fact that during the 10 years since the project was initiated, the budget had risen from an initial R68 million to R237.5 million. DWS explained that this was because the scope of the project had changed during that time.
What’s happening now?
Asked about the current status of the JKWTW upgrade, implementing agent Amatola Water said the new projected completion date is March 2022.
Nosisa Sogayise, Manager: Stakeholder and Communications, told SmilingSouth that Amatola Water had recently learnt that Mamlambo Construction was under new management. Responding to questions on Tuesday 7 December, Sogayise said Amatola had been giving the contractor assistance in its role as facilitator; however, this had not helped.
“The James Kleynhans project will not be finalized as per the planned date,” Sogayise said. “Amatola Water [has] learnt that the [company has] been sold and is currently under new management due to financial difficulties experienced by the contractor.
“The contractor had difficulties in procuring material for the project and to remunerate employees,” Sogayise said.
Makana referred queries about the project to Amatola Water, who referred specific questions about the contractor to Mamlambo Construction. That company in turn referred questions back to Makana. And so SmilingSouth has not yet been able to confirm the status of the contractor from Mamlambo themselves.
And what if it rains enough to fill the dams west of Makhanda?
The DA reported on a recent oversight visit to the Waainek Water Treatment Works, saying that the building was unsecured and that pumps and motors were missing.
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[…] to the Department of Water and Sanitation-funded upgrade project was to assess progress. Following numerous delays since the project started 10 years ago, the most recent revised anticipated completion date was March 2022. The upgrade is set to double […]