This follows a stand-off between the two entities over the non-payment by the troubled metro which is under administration. The water board's  Executive Operations and Maintenance Officer, Maruping Rapudungoane, claims in a statement that a deal or an agreement was struck following court proceedings where the Metro agreed to make the first payment of R35 million on Friday 4 December 2020.

Another payment, totalling R85 million, is expected to be paid by the metro on Thursday 10 December 2020, which then adds up to the R120 million requested by Bloem Water. 

The water board, which supplies millions of residents in the Free State with water, says it has restored water supply but warned that the 100% restoration of water supply is a temporary measure, dependent on the Mangaung Metro honouring its commitment. 

Meanwhile, the metro spokesperson, Qondile Khedema, tells OFM News that the Metro and Bloem Water have reached an amicable solution to restore water to all areas that were affected by the water supply restrictions.  

"Mangaung’s failure to strictly adhere to any of the above-mentioned timeframes will automatically trigger the water reduction. The current situation is very critical, as it has placed Bloem Water’s financial capacity in an unprecedented crisis. The entity is unable to meet its monthly financial obligations with the crucial one being financing of operations," Rapudungoane adds.

The water board has taken a swipe at the metro saying "It has been noted with concern that the Metro enjoys being supplied with water at full capacity, imposing tariff increases and continuing to operate normally while not servicing its water debt with Bloem Water.

"On the other hand, Bloem Water operates in a very constrained environment, where municipalities don’t pay for the water services with impunity.

The entity is in a dire state and at the point where it is difficult to run its daily operations due to cash flow problems," Rapudungoane further adds.

OFM News previously reported that the Bloem Water board had cautioned of its possible collapse due to the non-payment by some municipalities.

In June, the institution announced that three municipalities, which include the Mangaung, Mantsopa, and Kopanong Municipalities, have not been keeping up with their accounts. The three municipalities at the time owed the water entity a combined amount of more than R1 billion, with the embattled Mangaung’s account alone amounting to almost a billion.

OFM News