Staff Reporter
Water and sanitation minister Pemmy Majodina said on Monday that the launch of a second tunnel boring machine (TBM) for the Lesotho Highlands Water Project Phase II would help bring Gauteng closer to water security.
Speaking at the launch in Lesotho, Majodina said the milestone was more than an engineering achievement.
Instead, it was a strategic intervention for South Africa’s economic heartland and a regional infrastructure project for both Lesotho and South Africa.
“As TBM [machinery] advances, it brings us closer to the dream of a water secure Gauteng, which is the economic hub of the country,” Majodina said.
The central focus of the project is a 38.5-km transfer tunnel linking the Polihali and Katse dams into a gravity-driven water system that will move water “without a single pump”.
She said the launch marked a shift “from preparation to full-scale underground progress” after years of preparatory work, including
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