STELCO and MNU to Study Rising Electric Bills

State Electric Company (STELCO) and the Maldives National University (MNU) have signed an agreement to conduct an academic study into the rising electric bills. The agreement, signed by STELCO's Managing Director Hussain Fahumy and MNU's Vice Chancellor Dr. Aishath Shehenaz Adam, aims to address public concerns and provide transparency.

The study will analyze all electric bills issued by STELCO from 2014 onwards. Speaking at the signing ceremony, Fahumy acknowledged the various opinions on the bills and requested MNU to conduct a fair and academic investigation. He assured that STELCO would provide all necessary information and resources without any reservations to facilitate this research.
"In order to facilitate this, we will, without any reservations, provide all information we can and give access to our systems. There will be no limits in this. We will provide all resources," Fahumy stated. "We strongly request that this be done without any restraint and that the truth of the matter is revealed to the public."

Shehenaz outlined the main objectives of the study, which include providing academic research in the field of electricity, offering higher education opportunities, and creating internship opportunities. The study will focus on several key areas:

• Determining electricity consumption levels at different times of the day.
• Identifying the seasonal relationship with electricity consumption.
• Examining the authenticity of STELCO's billing process and increasing transparency.
• Checking for discrepancies between electric meter readings and billed amounts.
• Authenticating bill calculations and checking for discrepancies.

Additionally, the study will explore electricity economizing methods and identify areas for reducing consumption.
This initiative comes in response to public criticism over increasing electricity bills, with many taking to social media to express their concerns. STELCO provides electricity to over 70,000 households in the Malé area, with power demand reaching 100 megawatts during peak hours. This year, peak demand rose to as high as 113 megawatts. To address the issue of rising bills, STELCO plans to visit households and conduct audits.

Electricity consumption in the Maldives has been increasing by about 8 to 10 percent each year. Based on current trends, STELCO estimates that peak hour demand could rise to 120 megawatts within the next year. This study aims to provide insights and solutions to manage and potentially reduce the rising electric bills.