By: Addis standard

The Ethiopian Electric Utility (EEU) has announced that more than 25,000 problems related to power outages have been identified in the capital, of which 54% have been resolved.

The announcement was made today, during a press briefing by EEU CEO, Engineer Getu Geremew, on the company’s 2024/25 fiscal year performance and its 2025/26 plan.

According to Engineer Getu, the utility generated 63.12 billion birr in revenue during the recently concluded 2017 fiscal year, representing a 48.6% increase compared to 2016. Revenue sources included electricity sales, pole leases, consulting services, and the sale of unused assets.

He added that 155 rural kebeles and villages were provided with electricity and that 501,588 new customers were connected. The EEU also replaced 53,714 old energy meters with modern smart meters. The total number of customers now stands at over 5.2 million, including more than 4.2 million post-paid, over 900,000 pre-paid, and more than 43,000 smart meter users.

Addressing concerns about persistent power outages, Getu acknowledged that the problem remains significant. Responding to a media question on the recent electricity tariff adjustment and criticism that it does not adequately consider low-income households, he said, “Ethiopia has the lowest tariff in the world; the increase made is also moderate.” He noted that the adjustment was implemented once but spread over four years, with consideration given to low-income communities.

The CEO also pointed to security challenges in northern and western Ethiopia in recent years, which, he said, had hindered the utility’s operations and required billions of birr in replacement works.

For the 2025/26 fiscal year, the EEU plans to extend electricity access to 154 additional rural kebeles and construct 19,760 kilometers of new power lines to connect new customers.

Last August Shiferaw Telila, former CEO of EEU, addressed the issue of frequent power disruptions across the country, particularly in Addis Abeba. Local media reports indicate growing frustration among residents over persistent, prolonged, and unscheduled electricity interruptions. Shiferaw attributed the outages primarily to the theft of electrical infrastructure.

According to the utility, theft of electricity infrastructure caused substantial financial losses, with damages in the 2023/24 fiscal year alone estimated at more than 64 million birr. EEU said the problem is not confined to the capital, citing significant impacts in the Amhara, Oromia, Southwest Ethiopia, and Tigray regions.

The EEU reported that in the first seven months of the 2024/25 fiscal year, theft and destruction of property caused losses totaling 50.2 million birr.