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UMGENI WATER
www.umgeni.co.za
Natal, 43 of which are local municipalities, ten are
ENABLED AND INNOVATIVE GROWTH
district municipalities and one is a metro.
Umgeni Water is a state-owned business enterprise that
was established in 1974 to supply drinking water in bulk Fourteen of these municipalities are Water Services
to the municipalities of Durban and Pietermaritzburg Authorities, as determined by the Water Services Act. Of
and to consumers in the corridor of these cities. The these Water Services Authorities, seven are customers
organisation has grown over the years to become of Umgeni Water. They are eThekwini Metro, Msunduzi
the largest bulk potable water provision entity in the Local Municipality, iLembe District Municipality, Ugu
Province of KwaZulu-Natal and the second-largest District Municipality, Harry Gwala District Municipality,
water utility in South Africa. uMgungundlovu District Municipality and uThukela
District Municipality.
Umgeni Water, the group, currently has a total of
1 231 personnel at its various sites. Most of them Umgeni Water’s involvement in uThukela District now
are involved in all of the functional areas of Umgeni means the organisation will cover 44% of the Province
Water: finance, asset management, planning of of KwaZulu-Natal, from its original 32%, and the water
projects, project management, water quality, water it treats and supplies will ultimately reach 73% of
resource management and environmental science and the Province’s population of 11.1 million people, or 29
management. million households.
Expansion Core Functions
The service area of Umgeni Water was extended The key activities of Umgeni Water, as defined in the
in December 2015 to cover the entire Province Water Services Act (Section 29), are to provide water
of KwaZulu-Natal, amounting to 94 359 square services (bulk potable/drinking water and sanitation
kilometres. There are 54 municipalities in KwaZulu- services) to water services authorities (municipalities).
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