MANILA, Philippines — The Manila Electric Company has seized illegal or jumper wires as long as “seven times the circumference of the earth,” according to Meralco Chief Operating Officer Ronnie Aperocho 

Aperocho during the Senate committee on public services hearing on Monday on the firm’s  25-year franchise renewal, said that from January 2007 to September 2024, Meralco has confiscated a total of 8,300 tons or 276,000 kilometers of illegal wires.

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“Mas mabigat pa po ito sa (it is heavier than)  2,600 SUVs (sports utility vehicles) and around seven times the circumference of the earth,” Aperocho said, adding that Meralco’s storage facilities are already overflowing with seized illegal cables.

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Aperocho made this revelation as Senator Raffy Tulfo questioned Meralco for charging systems losses to consumers.

Systems loss refers to unbilled electricity or electricity lost due to pilferage through usage of “jumper wires” or through the transmission and distribution process.

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To compensate for this, power distributors like Meralco are authorized to pass on part of the cost to consumers.

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