Monday, 22 November 2010 12:47
Not unique to South Africa or squatters
If you are South African and have always thought that illegal electricity connections and electricity theft is mostly a uniquely South African problem associated with squatters and backyard dwellers in townships, you are wrong. A short extract from a recent edition of Nick Hodge’s Energy & Capital newsletter gives a fascinating picture of what is happening in some American cities.
Energy thievery happens in a variety of ways. Yet it's a rarely talked about topic.
In fact I'd never read much about it until the other day. When I did, it got me thinking...
How many different ways is energy being stolen from us?
How much is it costing us?
And of course, how can we profit from it?
I've Uncovered A Photograph that Could Hand You $36,950 by this Time Next Year...
I don't blame you if this sounds far-fetched...
In fact, if I hadn't met the man who travelled 1,400 miles to track me down — just to hand me a photo — I wouldn't have believed it either.
But once you take a peek at the snapshot, as well as the three reasons, it could make you rich, I have no doubt you'll change your mind.
Detroit Theft City
In Detroit it's not just the auto companies looking for handouts.
DTE Energy (NYSE: DTE), which operates Detroit Edison, has put together an entire task force to combat electricity theft.
How many illegal connections do they come across?
“Thirty times a day times 30 employees. Hundreds...” according to Mark Johnson, who heads the theft investigation unit.
And apparently it's an epidemic; 60,000 cases of theft were verified last year.
It's not just squatters that are to blame...
Landlords are offering “free utilities” that are actually stolen.
And the company has even reported a “great increase” in illicit connections made by those who can actually afford to pay for electricity.
- 01/02/2011 07:51 - Culture of protest has become entrenched
- 31/01/2011 13:01 - Countdown to elections has started
- 11/01/2011 05:57 - Service delivery
- 26/11/2010 06:47 - Game on to save 2010 stadiums
- 24/11/2010 08:35 - Municipal elections around the corner
- 19/11/2010 06:57 - Certificate Qualification
- 14/10/2010 08:41 - Rapid urbanisation requires proactive planning
- 04/10/2010 09:59 - Municipal Elections
- 28/07/2010 09:54 - World Cup was a diversion, but challenges remain
- 27/05/2010 11:00 - Local administration remains under pressure
“The attitude is, screw 'em,” says Michigan State University Sociologist Carl Taylor.
Now, I paid about $1,600 last year for electricity and natural gas for my home. Multiplied by 60,000, that works out to $96 million in stolen energy each year — just in Detroit. Just from DTE Energy.
There are 10 cities in the U.S. with populations greater than Detroit...
We're dealing with billions of dollars in losses from direct energy theft here.
Profile
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