Mikesh...
If you care -- the juice sent to India's farmers is generally NEVER metered.
Instead, that expense is picked up by the national government via subsidies to the power system operators -- which are, generally, government owned bodies at the 'state level.'
( These Indian states are as populous as major nations. )
Not withstanding lousy distribution practices -- it's the MASSIVE shunting of power to non-payers like farmers that explains the astounding 'lost' billings.
The fraction of energy lost in ground resistance is a total joke compared to the numbers discussed above.
Another massive problem -- across the 3rd world -- is out right meter by-passing theft. This is done with a wink, a nod and a corrupt pay-off by crony capitalists.
The nation as a whole is expected to pick up their tab. Once this gets rolling -- each and every businessman wants in -- lest he be left as the last idiot actually paying his power bill.
We see the same log-rolling/ go-along-to-get-along in our own commercial banking system where practices have become entirely corrupted by political mandates and competitive pressures.
Famously, in the Soviet era, the Communists never billed for power.
Neither did Saddam.
'Free' power seems to be a feature of despotic/ corrupt government -- across all forms.
For the last in weirdness: Greece is attempting to collect taxes via their power grid. (!) The result: thousands of electricians are running around bypassing meters all over that nation -- and utility revenues are crashing into the ground so fast that no other nation will lend money or juice to Greece.
Swell!
In California electric power policy has been hijacked as a political hobby horse. So we now have kWhr priced as penalty taxation -- almost as bad as Greece -- with the marginal kWHr billed at an astounding $0.45 per!
This has absolutely no bearing on the actual cost of the power -- it's simply a punishment rate/ sumptuary tax on McMansions -- largely driven by the Hollywood Left!
Spain went down this very road -- and it broke their national economy and sent the government out of office. At this time their new government is trying to walk back that cat -- and climb out of a wall of ruin. One part of their solution: 21% VAT -- i.e. 21% sales tax on just about everything in sight. (!)
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Wherever these schemes get rolling -- electricians lose their jobs/ careers.
As power rates go too high -- or utterly collapse -- there's no need for us -- or way to pay us.
Swell.
