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Stealing electricity is abuse of public funds — PM
By Petra - Sep 21,2014 - Last updated at Sep 21,2014
AMMAN — Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour on Sunday called for addressing electricity theft and reducing energy waste.
During a meeting of sector stakeholders at the Prime Ministry to discuss sabotage of electricity networks, the premier also called for putting an end to attempts to violate the law, noting that stealing electricity is an abuse of public money, as the National Electric Power Company’s
(NEPCO) assets are a national resource.
Ensour called for assigning a security detail to accompany NEPCO inspectors during their field visits and giving the inspectors the authority to detain any violators or assailants.
In addition, the prime minister directed electricity distribution companies to take all necessary measures to ensure that there will be no power cuts during winter and severe weather conditions.
Discussions during the meeting also focused on the challenges facing NEPCO and power distribution companies, such as electricity loss, which is estimated at around 8 per cent, costing JD800,000 a month, or JD9.6 million a year.
Unpaid dues from state agencies stand at JD38 million while regular subscribers owe NEPCO JD24 million.
Talks also covered expediting the application of smart electricity meters to reduce power theft and improve capacity.
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Ericsson, the Sweden-based ICT infrastructure company, has shown interest in collaborating with the government to curb electricity theft and loss, which an expert said cost the Kingdom hundreds of millions of dinars annually.
Electricity loss currently stands at 15 per cent and can be reduced to 9 per cent with the right strategy, especially as theft is blamed for a significant part of this loss, according to the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.
AMMAN — The Energy and Mineral Resources Regulatory Commission (EMRC) said Saturday it dealt with 141 cases of electricity theft during the