In the last six months, the company Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM) in Manica province has accumulated an estimated loss of around 1.3 million meticais as a result of theft and vandalization of electrical equipment.

The damage occurred in the city of Chimoio and in the district of Vanduzi. Most of the vandalized infrastructure has to do with power transformation poles (PTs).

According to EDM, in the city of Chimoio alone, the provincial capital, criminals destroyed and stole 14 transformer poles. Other infrastructures were vandalized in the district of Vanduzi.

The director of the company Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM), which serves the Chimoio customer area, Luísa Chilaúle, who confirmed this on Wednesday in Chimoio, explained that the damage was the result of miscreants looking for part of the fittings from the transformer stations to make household utensils, mainly pots and pans.

"The situation was under control. The vandalizing and theft started again at the end of last year. This year alone, 16 transformer poles have been vandalized. The criminals are looking for copper cables and taking oil from the transformer poles for commercial purposes. It's a situation we find difficult. When they are vandalized, in the process of replacing them we divert some of the material that would have been used for new connections," said Luísa Chilaúle, quoted by AIM.

The source added that "thefts jeopardize the process of expanding energy to other customers. The effort now is to combat these thefts and vandalizations because they slow down the development of the province and the country in general."

At the moment, according to the source, EDM is in the process of expanding the electricity grid to other regions of Manica province.

"This year we are trying to speed up the process. We want to believe that in the second phase we will be able to complete the process of 44 transformer poles in Manica," said Luísa Chilaule.