SA to secure 2010 power supply
17 August 2007
South Africa's government, electricity regulator and state company Eskom are working to identify weaknesses in power supply systems in the nine 2010 Fifa World Cup host cities.
"We are paying serious attention to the issue of power supply, taking into account that the World Cup will be during the winter season," Joe Phaahla, director-general of the government's 2010 unit, told journalists in Johannesburg on Thursday.
Speaking at a briefing preceding a media tour of 2010 sites around the city, Phaahla said all 2010 stadiums would have built-in back-up generators, in line with Fifa's requirements. A task team had also been formed to assess the quality and security of South Africa's electricity supply for the tournament.
National government, Phaahla explained, would help the smaller host cities deliver on the infrastructure needed for 2010. He commended Johannesburg on having started upgrade work on sports fields which would be used as team training venues, but added that the smaller host venues had yet to start doing this.
The government will invest around R17.4-billion in transport and other infrastructure in the lead-up to 2010.
World Cup matches will be played in 10 stadiums across the country, of which half are being renovated to comply with Fifa's requirements. Construction has begun on the other five stadiums, which are being built from scratch.
Renovations to four of the stadiums - Vodacom Park in Mangaung (Bloemfontein), Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg, Loftus Stadium in Pretoria and Ellis Park in Johannesburg - would be complete by December 2008, Phaahla said.
The other six - Soccer City in Johannesburg, Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit, Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane, and the stadiums in Nelson Mandela Bay (Port Elizabeth) and Green Point in Cape Town - would be completed by October 2009.
Phaahla said that all 17 government guarantees for the tournament had been signed, and that the development of the legal framework for the tournament was well ahead of schedule.
Also speaking at the briefing, Yvonne Johnston, chief executive of the International Marketing Council of SA, said it was estimated that cumulatively 30-billion people would be exposed to South Africa during the six weeks of the event.
An estimated 24.6-billion (cumulatively) were exposed to Germany when that country hosted the event in 2006.
On perceptions of South Africa's readiness to host the event, Johnston said South Africa's construction sector deserved credit and faith. "South Africans built Dubai, and that's a great success," she said. "Let's have some faith in our fellow countrymen."
SouthAfrica.info reporter and BuaNews
|
