APUA Probes Electricity Under-Billing by Major Businesses
The Antigua Public Utilities Authority (APUA) is investigating reports that several major commercial customers, including supermarkets, have been paying electricity bills lower than those of ordinary households, a government spokesperson confirmed on Friday.
Director-General of Communications Maurice Merchant said Cabinet was told that “some large businesses are paying electricity bills that some households are paying,” describing the discovery as a clear indication that “something irregular is happening.”
He explained that APUA has begun installing new tamper-proof metering systems to prevent manipulation of the utility’s equipment and ensure accurate readings.
“The minister indicated that APUA is currently working towards installing particular systems that will prevent any tampering of its equipment,” Merchant said during the post-Cabinet media briefing.
The initiative follows earlier findings by the Ministry of Utilities that certain companies were under-reporting their electricity usage, depriving the authority of expected revenue. Merchant said the upgrade of meters is intended not only to stop the irregularities but also to recover lost income. “I think that is all part of the plan,” he noted.
No names or numbers were disclosed, but officials said the situation had become “an eye-opener” for the Cabinet, which has called for tighter oversight of commercial energy consumption.
The new meters are expected to form part of a broader effort to modernize APUA’s billing and monitoring systems as the government moves to improve transparency and reduce revenue leakages across state agencies.
Advertise with the mоѕt vіѕіtеd nеwѕ ѕіtе іn Antigua!
We offer fully customizable and flexible digital marketing packages.
Contact us at [email protected]
APUA is stealing from poor people for years and they don’t care to do anything about it. I never hear Cabinet talk about that.
You all need to compensate poor people.
While APUA is stealing from poor people rich people is stealing for from APUA and the circle continue.
Lang, Lang time me believe that ah happen and on top of that them ah kill the people with heavy prices. Bring dong de hammer pon dem, no kay how big dem be
Is not now they supposed to do this!!
But they also need to check out personal homes too. Plenty people out there messing with electricity and hooking up air conditioners before the lines meet their meters.
Yes I said it and we know it’s true so you all can come for me all you want so lemme just go braid my hair….
@hmmm…
Tell us how
@Ahhh bayyyy you sound so F$&ked up who go come for you like tou never finish primary school a sudden tou want say
This been happening for years now. Corruption and graft is high at every level of society in Antigua and Barbuda. And where it is found out and known, inducements are given in order to silence people. It’s almost a way of life nowadays. Everybody knows how to beat the system.
Simply put, if the APUA had a power factor penalty agreement for large consumers it would be a different situation where they cannot under perform.
But it is also a two way street because APUA doesn’t have a dependable power supply, so during power suppression what recoups the losses to the APUA? Is it historical billing estimation?
The APUA has got to improve and advance it service delivery in the first instance, carry out work on the line energized, even the waterlines are by pass in some countries to repair the pipes so water service is not interrupted to customers, on the mentioning of water, there are hot water steam service in other countries that is maintained by workmen safely much less to regular cold water.
The electricity side of it need great advancement so that their is no power outages that affect all function of services to the the consumers, they need to get into hotline work, been trained and experience in that field I would propose it as a way of solving even this under reading of meters, because when APUA suppress the power frequently especially on high demand commercial customers, their motor start up amps to run will dramatically increase and deter the customer to use APUA power and instead run on generator constantly to protect their equipment, there is a galvanize manufacturing business, that to this day the APUA can’t get them to apply for a 3 phase service for their equipment, they make arguments about power factor and frequency and plus or minus voltage drop and gets away technically though I suspect they are politically connected.
The APUA needs a hands on visionary electricity manager that is not just job entitled because of political connection but one that can do the work physically and not just a romanticize CEO.