By Reem Tombokti.
Tripoli, 22 July 2013:
Greedy thieves are threatening the country’s already overstretched electricity resources by stealing power supply cables.
“These people . . .[restrict]steal the cables and then sell on the copper from them,” press officer for the Ministry of Electricity, Wisam Bin Shaban, told the Libya Herald.
Sirte is the latest area to fall victim to this crime spree. Local residents have suffered severe power shortages following a spate of thefts from power stations and pylons around the town.
“This is not the first time this has happened,” Bin Shaban said. As well as cable thefts, the General Electricity Company of Libya (GECOL) faced other problems, including the loss of maintenance vehicles and equipment, he added.
Even the capital has been affected, with some GECOL vehicles not able to reach certain areas around Tripoli due to security concerns. “Every time technicians go to do maintenance work in these areas, they either get their cars or equipment stolen,” Bin Shaban said.
Despite repeated requests, GECOL has apparently not received any help from the Interior Ministry to secure its maintenance teams. “When they plan to go somewhere, they send a committee ahead first, to ask the local council to secure the area,” Bin Shaban said, “but this still doesn’t prevent the thefts.”
A spokesperson for GECOL said that the thieves “sell the stolen copper to neighbouring countries.” A kilogram of copper used to fetch around LD 120, he said, adding he was not sure what the going rate now was.
The theft of cables, as well as maintenance vehicles, has so far cost GECOL millions, he told the Libya Herald.
The GECOL spokesman blamed the country’s power cuts not only the theft of cables but also the recent strikes at the country’s oil fields and export terminals. The protests at Zuetina Oil Company had caused a shortage of 500 MW, he said.
Workers at the Zuetina fields and port returned to work nearly a week ago, after a series of protests demanding improved working conditions. Further disruption was then caused by a different group of protestors who briefly closed the port in a dispute over jobs they said had been promised to them by the government. Both port and fields are now working at normal capacity. [/restrict]
