The Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) could cut off the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) electricity after the elections in about two weeks, Kan 11 News reported on Saturday night.
The company plans to start cutting off the villages in Judea and Samaria, in order to pressure the PA to pay its electricity bill, which stands at 1.7 billion shekels. It is estimated that the political echelon will not prevent the move, but will ask the company to act in restraint.
Two weeks ago, the company informed the Prime Minister, the Finance and Energy Ministers, the Electricity Authority and the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) that, due to the debt of the eastern Jerusalem Electric Corporation, it intends to implement the cut-off procedure. According to a Supreme Court ruling issued two months ago, the IEC must wait 35 days from the date of the notification to the relevant parties before it can cut off power.
Last month, it was announced that Israel and the PA agreed that the PA would pay 300 million shekels to cover the debt to the IEC.
Under the understandings obtained, the money will be deducted from the PA’s tax money and at the same time the parties will work to formulate an orderly electricity purchase contract between the PA and the IEC.