Contractors' repeated damage to cables

I refer to the letter (The Sunday Times, March 20) on the electricity service in Triq it-Tiben, Marsascala.

Your correspondent stated that he was inconvenienced due to repeated power interruptions and fluctuating supply, adding that although he had complained, nothing had been done to solve his problem.

Enemalta Corporation would like to reassure your correspondent that customer service is a priority. The corporation seeks to address and assist with complaints and enquiries that are lodged by its customers in the shortest time possible.

With respect to the electricity cuts that were mentioned, these were caused by private contractors who damaged distribution cables. On March 3, a power cable was damaged by a contractor in Triq il-Qaliet and on March 7 another one was damaged in Triq Wied iz-Ziju. In short, there were four interruptions that occurred on three different days that were all due or resulted from such damage.

Due to heavy development and increasing demand for electricity, a new electricity substation had been approved to satisfy this demand and to cater for future development. Measures have been taken to reinforce the area's electricity system by commissioning a new substation in Triq il-Gandoffli, corner with Triq is-Sajjieda.

This substation has just been energised and is expected to bring about improvements to the electricity service. In addition, a new power feeder has also just been installed to further reinforce the system.

One must however bear in mind that no amount of spare distribution capacity will solve the interruptions related to local distribution faults, which regrettably can occur from time to time. The corporation is doing its utmost to ensure that such interruptions are kept to a minimum.

It should be noted that Enemalta Corporation actually installed a voltage recorder in Triq It-Tiben between March 22 and 23 to keep track of the voltage. The levels recorded show that the voltage in this area is within acceptable and established limits.