TPLF Destroyed 53% of High Power Transmission Lines in Afar, Amhara, says EEP

ADDIS ABABA – More than 53 percent of high power electric lines in Afar and Amhara regional states were destroyed by the invading TPLF group, said the Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP) on Wednesday.

The state-run firm said this in an update regarding the wrecking caused by the terrorist-desigatned TPLF on electric infrastructures, services provision and the ongoing restoration push in the regions.

EEPsaid the destructions range from disconnecting transmission lines, flattened electric polles, and ransacked district offices of the firm to stealing a Main portable electric transmission unit 200 million birr from Woldia Town.

The level of destruction and the expenses spent on restoration efforts so far are estimated to be worth at least 1.64 billion birr, said Moges Mekonnen, spokesperson of the EEP, in a press briefing on Wednesday.

People in various districts of the two regions faced an electricity outage from a 14-day to six months.

Due to the TPLF’s the range of destructions that occurred between August 2, 2021 and December 18, 2021, the firm could not deliver 147.19 million kilowatt hour (kWh) electricity, causing it to lose 231.9 million birr in revenue.

EEP also had to spend a total of 29.5 million to buy materials needed to restore electric power alone, said Moges, adding that Additional $23 million finance is also required to completely resolve the outage.

Reconnecting districts experiencing outages will continue to be the main focus of EEP, he added.

Ethiopian electric firm gave an update days after the Ministry of Education told parliamentarians that Ethiopia needs over 100 billion birr to fully restore schools ravaged by the terrorist TPLF Group and other conflicts in various parts of the country.

Education Minister Berhanu Nega said that the conflict inflicted by the TPLF seriously affected the learning-teaching process of more than 3 million students of school.

Over 1,200 schools have been fully destroyed due to the war and conflicts in several parts of the country while three universities in the Amhara Region have been fully and partially damaged by the TPLF aggression.

The Ministry has so far mobilized more than $130 million from partners during the past six months, its officials said.

 

Featured Image Caption: EEP maintenance crew engaging in restoration activities [Photo EEP]