Nearly half of treated water lost before reaching consumers

Nearly half of all treated water in Pietermaritzburg is lost before it reaches consumers, due to ageing infrastructure, leaks and years of underinvestment in municipal systems. Between July 2025 and the end of February 2026, municipal teams repaired more than 1 300 burst pipes. This week alone, 33 incidents were recorded over two days — 16 on Wednesday and 17 yesterday — disrupting supply in several areas.

In Msunduzi, infrastructure problems and constrained maintenance funding have led to significant losses.In the 2024/25 financial year, water distribution losses reached R166 million, with officials estimating that up to 50% of treated water is lost through leaks, theft and illegal connections. In the Department of Water and Sanitation’s 2023 No Drop Watch report, Msunduzi scored 69%, a rating the department classifies as average performance. The No Drop programme evaluates water losses and non-revenue water (NRW) across municipalities and water services authorities in South Africa, and is one of several initiatives aimed at addressing water loss stemming from ageing infrastructure, pipe bursts and leaks.

The challenges are not limited to Msunduzi. Across the district, municipalities face similar pressures, with ageing networks, limited capital budgets and maintenance backlogs driving water losses. During its 2024/25 financial year performance report presentation in Durban, uMngeni-uThukela Water said it was stepping in to help struggling municipalities reduce water losses.

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The utility said interventions had already been implemented in eThekwini Metro and Ugu District Municipality. The Msunduzi Association of Residents, Ratepayers and Civics (Marrc) said underfunding remains a key concern. Chief executive Anthony Waldhausen said the situation would not improve without proper investment. “If the municipality doesn’t allocate sufficient resources to maintain infrastructure, we will continue on this path of destruction,” he said, adding that as much as 60% of water losses are effectively subsidised by paying residents.

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