PA to reportedly become sole electricity distributor in West Bank

The Palestinian Authority (PA) signed an agreement with Israel today reportedly resolving longstanding debt issues between the PA and the Israel Electric Corporation (IEC), while the PA was positioned as the sole authority over electricity distribution across the occupied West Bank, according to Israeli and Palestinian officials.
The agreement was signed after discussions between Palestinian Civil Affairs Minister Hussein Al-Sheikh, Israeli Minister of Finance Moshe Kahlon and head of the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) Yoav Mordechai.
On Monday, Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that the PA agreed to repay some 500 million shekels ($132 million) upfront to the IEC, which provides around 88 per cent of total electricity consumption in the occupied Palestinian territory.
The initial payment was expected immediately, while another billion shekels ($264 million) was expected to be paid in installments spanning an extended period of time. A further 500 million shekels would be permanently erased from the PA’s debt, according to Haaretz.
A spokesperson for Mordechai said in a statement that the agreement was signed after “complicated” and “prolonged talks”,
“We have reached a remarkable decision that will allow the Israel Electricity Company to receive unpaid bills accumulated over more than a decade,” the spokesperson said in the statement.
The agreement also shifts full responsibility for the collection of electricity bills onto the PA, who in the past had rejected responsibility for the debt, claiming it fell under the jurisdiction of local electricity distribution companies.
Under the new agreement, the PA will provide electricity to local Palestinian electricity companies after purchasing it from Israel, becoming the sole authority for electricity distribution in the occupied West Bank.