Etihad Water and Electricity Company (EtihadWE) has revealed the implementation details of the generous initiative by His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the UAE, aimed at expanding the scope of electricity cost support for farmers with limited income across the country. This extension now encompasses all local farmers in the regions under the company's supervision in the northern emirates. The specialized operational and procedural units have initiated preparations at both operational and executive levels to execute the support program, beginning with the new year of 2024.

Engineer Yousif Ahmed Al Ali, the CEO of Etihad Water and Electricity Company, emphasized the significance of this initiative, stating, "Through the recent announcement of His Highness, financial support has been designated for the farmers, covering the actual electricity cost incurred by the company. This support is based on the subsidized consumption charges collected from the farm, amounting to only 7.5 fils per kilowatt-hour. This contrasts with the actual cost before the initiative, which ranged between 28 and 33 fils per kilowatt-hour."

CEO Al Ali further affirmed that the currently registered farmers benefiting from the President's initiative for farmers with limited income, a government support program initiated in July with around 3,000 eligible accounts, will be included in the new support program. This inclusion is expected to increase the total number of farms benefiting from the support to approximately 9,000, including the addition of farms in areas served by the company.

Al Ali highlighted the importance of farmers updating their information to ensure eligibility for support, emphasizing the necessity of consolidating all meters serving a single farm into a single account. The support provided through this initiative will be granted on a monthly basis following the approval of the eligible account, with no retrospective impact on charges incurred before the initiative or before the account's approval. Automatic cessation of support will occur upon issuing a final bill for the account registered in the support program. Failure to update information may result in cessation of support.

He clarified that the support eligibility for farmers is limited to accounts registered before the issuance of the supreme decree, excluding connections to new farms. The support also applies to only one farm registered under a single owner, whether for personal use or as part of food security initiatives.

Among the eligibility requirements for support, the farm must not be categorized as "commercial," or used for commercial purposes. Additionally, the owner should not receive support from any local authorities. Farm owners can ascertain the allocated support amount through their monthly consumption bill. Transactions for registering eligible farms for support can be submitted after ensuring compliance with the specified conditions through any of the service outlets affiliated with Etihad Water and Electricity Company.