Electricity theft in Greece: Businesses that steal electricity shut down and license removal from complicit electricians

The noose is tightening on those who indulge in power thefts. Today the Minister and Deputy Minister of Environment and Energy Thodoros Skylakakis and Alexandra Sdoukou will present to the Cabinet a new set of measures to ease energy costs, which will also include a stricter framework of penalties and fines for violators.

In particular, as Ministry officials noted to OT, those businesses found to be stealing power will be shut down, as is the case today in shops whose owners collect but do not pay VAT, or do not declare their income. Also, electricians who are caught providing services that “facilitate” power theft will have their licenses revoked.

Fines

At the same time, the fine currently calculated and imposed by HEDNO S.A. (Hellenic Electricity Distribution Network Operator S.A.) when it detects electricity theft will be tripled and in some cases it can even be quadrupled. The electricity thefts that HEDNO detects every year reach approximately 13,000 and in 25% of these incidents the amount – fine that the offenders are asked to pay exceeds 10,000 euros.

Today, after the Administrator’s technicians find that the meter has been tampered with, it is removed and passes a special check in order to determine the amount of power theft, which goes back to a five-year period and the amount is calculated – a fine with a higher charge per kilowatt hour than what would have been paid if the meter had not been tampered with. With the proposed regulations of the Ministry of the Interior, in addition to the multiplication of the fine, the penalty for the act of power theft will remain, which is currently punishable by up to three years in prison.

The phenomenon of electricity theft burdens all consistent citizens, who pay for it, along with the technical losses of the electricity network, through charges on their electricity bills. In 2022 alone, the cost was estimated at around 800 million euros.

“Apollo” program for free electricity

At the same time, according to information, the government’s energy staff will announce today to the cabinet the “Apollo” program for the production of cheap electricity for municipalities and for free electricity for energy-vulnerable households, which will be produced by 11 photovoltaic parks with a total power of 1 .1 GW (gigawatt).

In particular, the program will concern municipalities, which have created or will participate in an energy community. In fact, the proposal of the Ministry of the Interior includes specific criteria for the qualification of the local government authorities _ after a relevant call for participation that will be made in the next period _ as the energy that will be produced by the 11 parks of 100 MW (megawatts) is not sufficient for all municipalities.

As for the photovoltaic parks of the program, a competition will be held by the Waste, Energy and Water Regulatory Authority and the companies that qualify (by offering the lowest “tariff” for the electricity produced) will either build parks or participate with parks already developing or operating.

Part of the electricity that will be produced – approximately 30% to 50% as reported by sources of the Ministry of Internal Affairs – will be directed to the energy-vulnerable citizens of each Municipality, while the rest will be used to reduce the cost of electrification of municipal enterprises and infrastructure such as Municipal Water and Sewerage Companies, schools, sports centers, etc. To cover the needs of the “Apollo” program, it has been proposed that it be done directly through the Municipalities’ REPs (Regional Operational Programs). In addition, about a year ago it was announced that funds of 120 million euros had been earmarked to cover municipal energy needs for about 30,000 low-income households.

Invoices, defaulters and heating allowance

Also included in the package of measures on energy costs to be presented tomorrow are new types of electricity tariffs, including the single tariff with a predetermined price per month which will be mandatory for all energy suppliers.

The Ministry of Interior’s “package” will also include an allowance for those who heat using electricity, which will vary depending on how many days of the year the mercury drops below a certain temperature. However, the beneficiaries will not be able to receive both the current classic heating allowance (for oil, natural gas, etc.) and the new one that will be instituted, but will have to choose one of the two.

Also, the new measures will bring a new special multi-tenant tariff as well as … a headache for defaulters whose fees reach 500 million euros in the electricity retail market. First, HEDNO and Independent State Revenue Authority-AADE will check the unpaid bills over a period of five years and if it is established that there is no financial hardship, the electricity will be cut off. The defaulter’s previous provider will be able to instruct HEDNO to cut off electricity for a customer who has changed supplier and has left two unpaid bills.