The vice-president of the Public Electricity Companies, Ruben Jimenez Bichara, says that back in 2004 their losses were in the range of 45%, and despite all the programs that have been introduced to reduce theft and fraud to a minimum, with distance metering and other instruments, the losses are still around 38%. Next year, distance measuring of electricity consumption will be increased to cover 180,000 clients through programs financed by the Inter-American Development Bank and the World Bank. He said that a lot of emphasis is being placed on remote measurements at shopping malls and apartment complexes.