Ibrahim Kasita
19 August 2008
Kampala — THE Government has come up with strategies to reduce power losses, which cost the economy sh104b annually.
Fred Kabagambe-Kaliisa, the permanent secretary in the energy ministry, said 40% of the 255MW produced is lost in transmission and distribution. This means that over 100MW are lost.
"Commercial losses caused by illegal connections, a poor billing system, long response time by UMEME to reported cases and new connections plus unmetred connections all contribute to the losses."
"Actions to be undertaken by UMEME include putting in place a credible billing system and conducting more assertive public campaigns on power theft," Kabagambe-Kaliisa explained.
"UMEME should link up with national and district leaders, especially MPs, resident district commissioners and local council leaders when handling cases of power theft."
He said UMEME field staff should have prominent identification, which cannot be easily forged and also work closely with district security committees.
Kabagambe-Kaliisa was stating outcomes of a stakeholders' forum on power loss reduction, which was held on July 18 at the Imperial Royale Hotel in Kampala.
"UMEME should provide a toll-free line to report power failures and there should be immediate response to reported cases of power failures."
"Provide prepaid metres to customers and conduct a thorough audit of power consumption for large consumers because power theft is not limited to domestic customers," he said.
The permanent secretary said there was a need for UMEME to quantify the different components of power losses and provide a loss reduction plan with measurable milestones.
Kabagambe-Kaliisa said UMEME should employ more staff and establish more offices closer to the customers.
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