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Eskom in the Eastern Cape says it is considering suspending services to some areas as vandalism of its infrastructure continues unabated.
In a statement, the power utility said these criminal acts leave scores of communities without electricity for days and pose a safety risk for the public.
"Live cables pose a threat to the safety and well-being of not only the affected communities but also its surrounding environment.
"Due to the frequency of these incidents, material challenges, and the costs of replacing the stolen and vandalised electricity poles, conductors and other infrastructure, it regrettably takes longer than normal to restore electricity to the affected customers.
"We cannot continue replacing critical material like poles and cables daily due to criminal activities, said Eskom General Manager of the Cape Coastal Cluster Mbulelo Yedwa.
He appealed to all stakeholders in the area to work closely with us and the South African Police Services to stop this.
Yedwa warned that if acts of vandalism continue, Eskom would have no choice but to suspend services in the area.
"Eskom is appealing to the community to report the wrong-doers and look after the Eskom electricity infrastructure in their areas to ensure that community livelihoods are not interrupted by these acts," he said.
