Service Delivery
Non-Revenue Water & Distribution Losses
Non-revenue water percentage and physical distribution losses against the SDBIP target.
Why non-revenue water is a governance issue
Non-revenue water represents treated water that is produced but never billed, draining municipal revenue and signalling failing infrastructure and weak metering. It is both a service-delivery indicator in the SDBIP and a financial-sustainability concern the AGSA and National Treasury watch under the MFMA. AuditPro Core tracks non-revenue water and physical losses against target with the evidence trail that makes the figure auditable.
The Numbers
AuditPro Core renders this view from your tenant's live, tamper-evident records. The figures below are illustrative sample data.
Non-Revenue Water
41%
▲ 3% vs target
SDBIP Target
≤ 30%
Litres Lost
18.4 Ml/day
estimated
Revenue Forgone
R 96 m
annualised
Non-revenue water trend
Losses by supply zone
| Supply zone | NRW % | Loss Ml/day |
|---|---|---|
| Central | 47 | 6.2 |
| North | 39 | 4.8 |
| East | 35 | 3.9 |
| West | 43 | 3.5 |
Figures shown are illustrative sample data for demonstration. AuditPro Core renders these views from your own tenant's live, tamper-evident records.
Non-revenue water defined
Non-revenue water is the difference between water put into the distribution system and water that generates revenue, expressed as a percentage. It combines physical leakage, unbilled authorised use and commercial losses such as meter under-reading and illegal connections.
Physical versus commercial loss
Physical losses are real water lost through leaks and bursts, while commercial losses are water consumed but not billed. The two require different interventions, so splitting them is essential for credible reporting.
Water balance method
A defensible figure relies on an IWA-style water balance reconciling system input to billed and unbilled consumption. Without metered inputs the percentage is an estimate that struggles on audit.
Revenue and sustainability link
Every percentage point of non-revenue water is foregone tariff income that undermines financial viability. The indicator therefore sits at the intersection of service delivery and going-concern assessment.
How AuditPro Core Bridges the Gap
- Water balance reconciliation: AuditPro Core reconciles system input volume to billed and unbilled consumption to derive the loss percentage.
- Loss decomposition: physical and commercial losses are separated so corrective action targets the right driver.
- Target tracking: actual loss is tracked against the SDBIP target with variance flagged.
- Evidence traceability: input meter and billing data sources are linked for audit verification.
Key Takeaways
- Treat non-revenue water as both a delivery and a financial-sustainability metric.
- Separate physical leakage from commercial losses to target interventions.
- Base the percentage on a metered water balance, not an estimate.
- Link every reported figure to input meter and billing source data.
See This on Your Own Data
AuditPro Core renders this dashboard from your tenant's live, tamper-evident records — every figure traceable to source.