Cables have been cut away and stolen from a number of places in the south. Photo: Jason Borg

Tens of households have ended up without power over the past few weeks, sparking an intensive police investigation into the theft of live overhead electricity cables.

The cables have been cut away and stolen from a number of places in the south, Times of Malta is informed.

The police suspect the reason behind this unprecedented type of theft is the rising price of copper on the international market – this precious metal is mainly found in overhead cables.

“We have had to spend hours in darkness in the past weeks as cables powering our road and residences have been severed by thieves,” a resident in Tas-Silġ, Marsaxlokk, said.

“It seems that well-equipped thieves are cutting electricity lines to steal copper,” another said.

Live electricity cables carrying high voltage are considered to be very dangerous and are something only professionals can handle. Whoever is stealing the cables would have to wear protective gear and use tall ladders or special purpose vehicles to reach them.

It seems that well-equipped thieves are cutting electricity lines to steal copper

Any slip-up in this very dangerous operation can cause sudden death.

When contacted, Enemalta confirmed that its technicians have had to intervene in various localities over the past weeks following the theft of electricity lines.

“Our distribution technicians were requested to provide assistance in several cases of theft of live overhead electricity cables,” a spokesman for the power distributor said.

Cables have been stolen from several different locations including Marsaxlokk, Żejtun, Għaxaq and Birżebbuġa.

“The police were called in and an investigation is under way,” the spokesman said.

Enemalta is calling for information that could help catch the perpetrators. Apart from the danger posed, this practice is causing discomfort to many residents.

“This theft has to stop, not only because we are wasting time and resources but also because it poses a great danger to pedestrians, drivers, residents and employees,” the Enemalta spokesman said.

Although new to Malta, the theft of electricity cables is widespread abroad, with the power lines normally melted to extract copper. This metal is then traded on the international market.

Investigators are not excluding anything. One of the lines of investigation is the possibility that the gang includes people with close links to Enemalta, including employees.

“At this stage we are not ruling anything out. However, this is not a theft which can be performed by anyone,” sources close to the investigation said.