The uMngeni-uThukela Water will assist the eThekwini Municipality with stabilisation interventions on pump stations in Durban. One of the proposed interventions includes structural and hydraulic assessments linked to the Old Point Road Pump Station in Durban.
Image: Leon Lestrade / Independent Newspapers
Resuscitating the Old Point Road Pump Station is an option being considered following pump failures at the new Mahatma Gandhi Pump Station in May 2026 that led to sewer spills into the Durban Harbour.
The eThekwini Municipality is planning a phased refurbishment and redesign programme for the Mahatma Gandhi Pump Station, estimated at approximately R350 million.
The uMngeni-uThukela Water (UUW) is also technically ready to assist the municipality with stabilisation interventions on pump stations. One proposed intervention includes structural and hydraulic assessments linked to the old Point Road Pump Station.
The building appears to have been vandalised and abandoned on Tuesday.
Sibusiso Vilane, acting director for the Water and Sanitation Directorate, updated the eThekwini Executive Committee (Exco) on repairs to the Mahatma Gandhi Pump Station. He outlined the municipality’s immediate, medium, and long-term vision to overhaul the pump station system in the Point.
He said the recent pollution incident in May 2026 arose from multiple simultaneous equipment failures at the Mahatma Gandhi Pump Station.
This station, he said, is equipped with four design pumps, of which a minimum of two pumps are required to sustain effective pumping operations. However, three of the pumps failed, leaving the one operational pump insufficient for the hydraulic load by design.
"As a result of these failures, sewage backed up within the system, causing surcharging of the sewer network, manhole overflows, and ultimately affecting Lavender Creek and the Durban Harbour marine environment," Vilane said.
He stated that one strategic intervention is to rehabilitate and repurpose the old Point Road Pump Station, near the Mahatma Gandhi Pump Station, to serve as an upstream protection, screening, balancing, and resilience facility.
"The old station presents a significant opportunity to improve the operational reliability of the Mahatma Gandhi Pump Station while reducing downtime, maintenance frequency, and emergency failures," he said.
Proposed options for the old Point Road Pump Station include the conversion into a dedicated preliminary screening facility positioned upstream of the Mahatma Gandhi Pump Station.
"The facility would intercept sewage flows before reaching Mahatma Gandhi, remove rags, plastics, wipes, wood, stones, and large foreign objects, reduce the hydraulic and mechanical loading on Mahatma Gandhi screens and pumps," Vilane added.
He said the plan was for the utilisation of the old pump stations as a flow balancing and equalisation facility with a balancing tank, emergency storage reservoir, or equalisation basin.
"The old pump station can be used as an emergency bypass and redundancy facility by functioning as a standby pumping station, emergency diversion point, or temporary bypass facility. It can be used as an advanced solids and debris management centre, which will include macerators, grinders, advanced screening systems, and debris dewatering systems."
He highlighted that the proposed options are subject to assessment by the professional services provider (PSP) and are also dependent on the costs, which must also be provided through an assessment.
Vilane said a meeting was held on May 17 with UUW to discuss the proposal.
Regarding the recent sewer spills, Vilane said the municipality has implemented emergency operational interventions and undertaken on-site clearing of pump blockages and debris accumulation.
He said the deployment of operational maintenance teams will be on a 24-hour basis along with increased monitoring of sewer network surcharging and overflow points.
"Solid waste and unwanted foreign object ingress remain major contributors to pump failures and sewer blockages. Intensified solid waste removal programmes within affected sewer catchments," he said.
Working with UUW, the municipality is currently prioritising procurement of several items, including pumps and motors, Additional Variable Speed Drives (VSDs), and toxic gas extraction systems.
The Mahatma Gandhi Pump Station requires substantial refurbishment and redesign interventions to address all identified design and operational deficiencies highlighted within the Royal Haskoning DHV and Bosch Consulting Engineers investigations.
"The city has identified the need for the provision of additional funding in the operational maintenance budgets affecting wastewater infrastructure reliability across the municipal area."
Vilane said that through the Metro Trading Services Reform Programme, the municipality is prioritising improvements in the efficiency of operations