Borehole Drilling in Cape Town
What we could source about borehole drilling in Cape Town: geology, typical depths, price guidance, permit rules and the drilling companies listed there from public information. It is a guide, not advice for your plot.
Last reviewed . Prices and depths are indications from the sources listed at the foot of the page.
Borehole drilling prices in Cape Town
Indicative project price
R50,000 to R140,000
R380 to R750 per metre. Another guide gives R80,000 to R140,000 for the Southern Suburbs (R565 to R750 or more per metre) and R45,000 to R95,000 for a typical 48 m Winelands borehole.
Typical drilling depth
30 to 120 m
From one price guide. Another puts a typical Winelands borehole at about 48 m. Your driller sets the depth from the survey.
Water level
1 to 3 m on the Cape Flats
A 2008 DWAF model report puts groundwater levels at typically about 1 to 3 m below ground across much of the Cape Flats. In Table Mountain Group sandstone the British Geological Survey says groundwater is often more than 100 m deep.
Listed companies
29
From public information, none verified by us.
Depths and water levels here are indicative ranges from regional geology and published guides, not predictions for your plot. They vary widely within a suburb and with season and pumping. Only a site survey and the driller's log can tell you what your plot will give, and a borehole can be dry.
Prices come from published price guides, not from quotes. The main guide does not say whether its per-metre rates include casing, VAT or mobilisation, and a fully equipped system (pump, tank and installation) costs more than a drilled and cased hole. Ask for written quotes that say what is included.
Borehole drilling companies in Cape Town (29)
These companies come from public Google business listings and company websites that we checked. We have not inspected, verified or endorsed any of them, and a listing says nothing about their registration, insurance or workmanship. Check the company yourself before you hire. Ratings are Google ratings, early 2026, and the list is sorted by rating weighted by number of reviews.
C A Wellpoints and Boreholes
40 Iona St, Milnerton, Cape Town, 7441, South Africa
4.9 out of 5
109 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
De Wet's Wellpoints and Boreholes
5B Stella Rd, Montague Gardens, Cape Town, 7441, South Africa
4.4 out of 5
96 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
AquaBlue SA - Borehole, well point, irrigation and water storage solutions
5A Bokmakierie Rd, Joostenberg Vlakte, Cape Town, 7570, South Africa
4.5 out of 5
25 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
CR Wellpoints & Boreholes
39 Tafelberg St, Bothasig, Cape Town, 7441, South Africa
4.6 out of 5
21 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
MJ boreholes wellpoints and irrigation
Unit 11, Park Edge Mews, 21 Link Way, Edgemead, Cape Town, 7441, South Africa
4.8 out of 5
16 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
Z&G Boreholes and Wellpoints
11 Seagull St, Pelican Heights, Cape Town, 7941, South Africa
4.5 out of 5
18 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
ProPoints Wellpoints and Boreholes
156 Chudleigh Rd, Plumstead, Cape Town, 7801, South Africa
4.5 out of 5
11 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
GEOSS South Africa (Pty) Ltd
9 Quantum St, Techno Park, Stellenbosch, 7600, South Africa
4.9 out of 5
7 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
Country Wide Drilling (Pty) Ltd
Farm Goedverwachting, Spes Bona Rd, Durbanville, Cape Town, 7538, South Africa
3.7 out of 5
13 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
Ciaan Water Drilling Enterprises
Gordon's Bay Dr, Gordons Bay Central, Cape Town, 7140, South Africa
3.6 out of 5
14 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
drillco
Unit C4, 11 Celie Rd, Retreat, Cape Town, 7965, South Africa
3.8 out of 5
10 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
Down South Drilling - Boreholes & Wellpoints
Gondolier Close, Sea Cottage Dr, Noordhoek, Cape Town, 7979, South Africa
4 out of 5
8 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
AQUIFY Water
2 Aquanaut Ln, Crofters Valley, Cape Town, 7975, South Africa
4.6 out of 5
5 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
National Drilling
Industrial Park, Unit 3B Broadlands Rd, Strand, Cape Town, 7140, South Africa
5 out of 5
4 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
Mission Drilling Boreholes
UNIT 2, CASTLE PARK, 4 Hunt Rd, Killarney Gardens, Cape Town, 7447, South Africa
4.8 out of 5
4 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
Easy Water Boreholes & Wellpoints
12 Nightjar St, Southern Suburbs, Cape Town, 7941, South Africa
4.8 out of 5
4 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
JR Boreholes
173 Westhoven St, Edgemead, Cape Town, 7441, South Africa
4.2 out of 5
5 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
365 Boreholes and wellpoints
47 lang - suid straat, Tennentville, Stellenbosch, 7600, South Africa
5 out of 5
3 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
Borehole Man
The Block, 9 Mocke Rd, Diep River, Cape Town, 7800, South Africa
4 out of 5
4 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
Rambore
Stikland Industrial, Cape Town, 7530, South Africa
4.3 out of 5
3 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
Watersure boreholes
2 Eyton Rd, Claremont, Cape Town, 7708, South Africa
5 out of 5
2 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
Borehole Services @ Venter Drilling Western Province
Farm, 764 Protea Rd, Klapmuts, Cape Town, 7625, South Africa
5 out of 5
1 review
Google rating, early 2026
Pump Well - Borehole Ingenuity
12 Van Zyl St, Strand, Cape Town, 7140, South Africa
5 out of 5
1 review
Google rating, early 2026
SA DRILLING
5 KENWILL ROAD, Brackenfell, Cape Town, 7560, South Africa
5 out of 5
1 review
Google rating, early 2026
Roundone Drilling Solutions CC
8 Canary_ St, Joostenberg Vlakte, Cape Town, 7570, South Africa
5 out of 5
1 review
Google rating, early 2026
Aquacore Boreholes
Unit C5, 11 Celie Rd, Steenberg, Cape Town, 7945, South Africa
3 out of 5
2 reviews
Google rating, early 2026
316 Enterprises - Borehole Drilling
Odin Dr, Thornton, Cape Town, 7460, South Africa
No Google rating
Borehole Drilling Machines
Unit 4, 13 Killarney Ave, Milnerton Rural, Cape Town, 7441, South Africa
No Google rating
Earthcore Drilling (Pty) Ltd
4 Seventh Rd, Montague Gdns Ind, Milnerton, Cape Town, 7441, South Africa
No Google rating
Geology and drilling conditions in Cape Town
The Cape Flats Aquifer is a shallow sandy aquifer with a high water table, often only 1 to 3 m below ground. The 2008 DWAF report describes wellpoints as a low-cost option for residential garden water there, and notes the threat to the aquifer from human and industrial waste. Table Mountain Group sandstone aquifers occur in the mountains and on the Peninsula, where boreholes are deeper and the water tends to be acidic with low dissolved solids. We have not sourced the geology of the Northern Suburbs, Durbanville or the Winelands, so ask your driller what the survey shows for your plot. Results vary from site to site and a dry or low-yield borehole is a real risk.
This is a regional picture. Which rock your plot is on, and what it will yield, only a site survey and test drilling can show.
Borehole water quality in Cape Town
On the Cape Flats the water table is shallow and the aquifer is exposed to surface pollution, so E. coli and nitrate come first. Table Mountain Group water is typically acidic (low pH) with low dissolved solids, so test pH, because acidic water attacks steel casing and copper pipes, and ask the lab to include iron and manganese.
SANS 241 tests to ask for first in Western Cape
- E. coli: not detected in 100 mL (acute health)
- Nitrate: 11 mg/L as N or less (acute health)
- pH: 5 to 9.7 (operational)
- Iron: 0.3 mg/L (aesthetic) and 2 mg/L (chronic health)
- Manganese: 0.1 mg/L (aesthetic) and 0.4 mg/L (chronic health)
Whatever the province, the baseline checks are E. coli, nitrate, pH and total dissolved solids. Only a lab test tells you what your water holds.
Water quality guide · Is borehole water safe to drink? · Water filters and treatment
Borehole permits and rules in Cape Town
In the City of Cape Town you must give the City at least 14 days' written notice before sinking a borehole, stating where it will be and what the water is for. The Water By-law also requires the borehole to be registered on the City's database with a City sign displayed on the property, and a meter where the borehole water goes into the City's sewers. The by-law adds that authorisation under section 39 of the National Water Act must be sought from DWS, so ask the City how that applies to a household borehole. We read the by-law as consolidated to July 2018, so confirm the current rules with the City. This applies inside the City's boundaries only. Under the National Water Act, taking borehole water for reasonable domestic use on your own property is a Schedule 1 use: no water use licence and, according to DWS, no national registration. Other uses can fall under the General Authorisation or need a licence. Municipal by-laws still apply on top of this.
Rules change and we are not your lawyer. Check the municipality's current process before you drill.
Read the permits and regulations guide →Questions to ask before you hire
- 1Can I have a written quote that says what is included: siting survey, drilling per metre, casing, yield test, pump, tank, VAT and any minimum charge?
- 2What happens if the borehole is dry or yields very little? Is there a minimum charge, and is it in writing?
- 3Who does the siting survey, and is it a SACNASP-registered hydrogeologist or geophysicist?
- 4Can I speak to recent customers, and can I see a driller's log or completion report from a recent job?
- 5Does the company belong to the Borehole Water Association of Southern Africa, and does it follow SANS 10299 (design, construction and drilling of boreholes)?
- 6Will you do a yield test (test pumping), how long will it run, and will I get the results?
- 7How will you handle my municipality's rules, and do you submit borehole data to the DWS National Groundwater Archive?
- 8Which laboratory will test the water against SANS 241, and will the results come to me?
- 9Do you carry public liability insurance, and can you show proof? Is there a written guarantee on workmanship, and what does it cover?
Pump installation, water filtration and equipping are usually quoted separately from drilling.
Areas this page covers (City of Cape Town)
Nearby places with their own rules
Stellenbosch, Paarl and Franschhoek are outside the City of Cape Town, so the City's water by-law does not apply there. Ask the local municipality for its rules.
Borehole drilling in other cities
Borehole drilling Johannesburg
Gauteng · 40 listed companies
Borehole drilling Pretoria
Gauteng · 15 listed companies
Borehole drilling Thohoyandou
Limpopo · 10 listed companies
Borehole drilling Gqeberha
Eastern Cape · 6 listed companies
Borehole drilling Polokwane
Limpopo · 5 listed companies
Borehole drilling Durban
KwaZulu-Natal · 5 listed companies
Sources
- OurPower borehole drilling cost guide, city table (updated 1 October 2026) (city totals, per-metre rates and typical depths; a price-guide page, not quotes)
- Waterpoint SA: Cape Town borehole drilling costs 2026, regional price guide (Southern Suburbs and Winelands prices)
- DWAF Cape Flats Aquifer model report, volume 5 (Umvoto and Ninham Shand, 2008) (Cape Flats water levels)
- British Geological Survey: hydrogeology of South Africa (typical yields, depths and water quality by rock type)
- City of Cape Town Water By-law 2010 as amended (consolidated to 20 July 2018), sections 57 and 58 (14 days written notice, registration, meter)
- National Water Act 36 of 1998, DWS copy (Schedule 1) (reasonable domestic use and by-laws)
- SANS 241-1:2015 drinking water limits (laboratory transcription) (limits quoted on this page)
Request borehole quotes in Cape Town
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