The price of ampere subscription in the countryside of Deir Ezzor has recently risen, over the last few days, by an estimated ten thousand Syrian pounds per ampere.
Power generator owners imposed a price of about 60 thousand pounds for “2 amperes,” which directly affected the citizens in the area.
This situation has imposed additional financial burdens, coinciding with everyday economic difficulties.
Sundus, an employee living in Hajin city in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, expressed her dissatisfaction with both the reduction of operating hours for amperes and their rising prices.
She told Enab Baladi that she has to pay 120 thousand Syrian pounds monthly for four amperes, as the generator owners do not adhere to the set price, and the price of amperes increases whenever there is a malfunction.
She added that the residents are worried about any power outage, as it stops for ten days without any compensation from the generator owner and without any deduction from the price of the ampere subscription.
Moreover, operating electrical appliances such as automatic washing machines, electric heaters, and water heaters becomes difficult on the current ampere service, with most residents subscribing to only three or four amperes, which limits their ability to operate these devices, which require more electricity.
Samir, the owner of a clothing store in the town of al-Shaafah, said he paid 35 thousand pounds per ampere instead of 25 thousand, to have electricity for four hours daily from six until ten in the evening.
He explained that the operation of generators and the determination of their prices are not subject to control, as they work for fewer hours than specified and suffer from frequent malfunctions. Despite complaints to local councils and municipalities, no improvement has occurred.
The exchange rate of the dollar averages around 15 thousand Syrian pounds, based on fluctuating rates in the region.
Power generator owners: We buy fuel from the black market
Abdullah, the owner of a power generator in the al-Shaitat region in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, expressed his annoyance at the local council for not issuing a tariff that specifies the hourly operation rate for electrical generators.
He pointed out that the council has not set a price that meets the rights of the generator owners and the rights of those benefiting from this service.
Generators are operated for only four hours per day, an insufficient period, and the generator owners face difficulties in securing sufficient diesel quantities for their operation, according to Abdullah.
The generator owners received a single batch in the current February, with the second batch supposed to be received on February 15, but that has not happened yet.
The generator owner added that the Autonomous Administration, which controls the northeastern regions of Syria, reduced the diesel allocations for generators and tripled its price, forcing them to purchase diesel from the black market at higher prices.
He noted that generator owners received a substance like grease instead of diesel in the winter, leading to costly engine malfunctions and the need to replace this substance.
He believes that the prices set by the Autonomous Administration for the ampere are not proportional to the costs of purchasing diesel, maintenance, and engine oil, and are far removed from the economic reality and the problems faced by generator owners.
Because of these conditions, many of them have submitted applications to the municipality to remove their generators due to the losses they have incurred, according to Abdullah.
An employee at the eastern Deir Ezzor countryside fuel office, who requested anonymity (not authorized to speak to the media), told Enab Baladi that local councils and the fuel authority are unable to control pricing due to non-compliance in delivering diesel batches regularly and with high quality.
He added that the failure to deliver on time affects the setting of appropriate prices for ampere subscriptions, leaving the community with a fluctuation in service and price instability due to the lack of supervision and accountability.
Residents in most Syrian areas depend on private power generators and buying amperes, as the official electricity networks are out of service, especially in areas not under the Syrian regime’s control, while the network only covers a few hours per day in regime controlled areas.
“Ampere” is the name used by Syrian people to refer to electric generators in Syria. As a result of repeated power outages across various regions in Syria, many people depend on generators, which convert fuel into electrical energy. The ampere subscription fees are affected by the diesel prices because people depend on diesel to run their generators.