campolife

Hi Everyone - newbie here.

Just a little background first.
Lived in the countryside near Castalla, Alicante for around 10 months 2004 to 2005. The house we bought and moved from the UK to live in could not be transferred to us due to a legal problem.

So the reformer offered to build us a new house about 3kms out of town amongst 5 or 6 other houses. However we then had to return to the UK so set up a Power of Attorney and put the new house (nearing completion) on the market. Houses were selling very quickly then but for some reason it didn't and we got caught up in the recession. To cut a very long story short we decided 2.5 years ago to return to the house in Spain but it has taken until now to sell our house here which we bought in the UK as an investment when we arrived back in 2005 (how dumb does that sound now).

We have not been back to Spain in all this time but were assured everything was completed with the exception of the final registration of the house with the land deed.

A neighbour now tells me that the electricity was never connected. The builder had told me this was already paid for and I would probably need to have a pylon on my land. I can't ask the builder as he has stopped trading and moved area.

Finally to my help request. As I don't hold any hope of being able to get the builder to sort this out does anyone know which company would be responsible for the provision of electricity cabling and supply in this area.

Also how would I be able to find out if it has indeed been paid for already but not completed yet for some reason?

And... Anyone know how much it would cost if I have to start from scratch?

Thanks in advance for any assistance you can give me.

Solarwhizz

The first problem we be to find out the status of the infrastructure in your locality, this you need to tackle with the Electricity supplier , ask a near neigbour for the name and address of nearest supplier,
The problems you then face would be, and these would be the questions
Can i have electrical at my house,
How much will it cost
how long before I can expect to be connectd,
This will then generate a load of questions from the Power supplier, most of which will be related to the permissions and planning of your house,
My advice would be to employ a specialist Gestoria, to do all this investigative work for you, and also to apply for the power connection.

Costs, assuming there is sufficient capacity on your local transformer, could be in the region of 1500 to 2000€ per pole from the nearest suitable point.
However it is not unusual for the local company to try to hit you for an upgrade to the transformer, which could drive cost up considerably,
it also may be worth while finding out how many other people in your locality need power also, as if there is a need, you can be sure that the neighbours will be well on with their negotiations etc, and you would then be sure to know the most accurate situation to date,
Good Luck this is usually not an easy one to solve,

campolife

Perhaps I should have said. The 2 nearest neighbours (50 to 100 metres) already have a supply but I was told this could not be spurred off from their supply for me.

Also I understand the the people who you pay for the electricity are not the one who supply and install it. However if it were to be around 2000€ this is far cheaper than alternatives such as solar or generator.

Thanks

Mitzyboy

€2000 a pole (plus possible upgrade)

missile

It can be very difficult and expensive to get electricity installed to rural properties and impossible if you do not have the appropriate certification.

I would suggest you contact Ibedrolla. Although they will not do the work, I found them to be very helpful with advice.

A friend has recently installed solar power @ €20,000 Your best option may be a generator.

campolife

I know if all else fails I can use a generator but a whole house one would be around 1200€ and use fuel, in normal use, at a rate of around 1lt per KWh. I would need refrigeration etc 24 hours and even on tick over the best generator would burn a litre every 2 hours.

I work this out to be 12€ per day minimum around 360€ per month. (about 7 times what I currently pay in the UK for electricity)

This using some info on the net unless I have totally misunderstood it, which is possible never having used one.

Thanks again

missile

Obviously a generator will be expensive, but I would suggest in the short term you have little choice.

For your info, I believe electricity is more expensive in spain, no doubt someone else will confirm / correct me.

Fred James

And now they insist that the connection from the nearest pole is underground to the outside meter box.

Ours was only 30m away but we had to have a 1m deep trench excavated, two 10cm pipes installed and the whole thing filled, first with concrete and the with soil. You also have to have a manhole cover every 25m for access.

That's just another €3000!

campolife

Looks like I will need to get the builder found as it was in the contract that he was responsible for it.

Is the below ground thing regional as I noticed in 2005 that some new houses were supplied direct from the top of the pylon?

Fred James

As always in Spain, it's not what the rules say but how the people concerned choose to interpret them.

My experience was in 2003.

mikelincs

If this si still the case, then you may have real problems. You need a decent lawyer to check this out, if the house hasn't been registered, it may be that the Electricity people won't connect you in any case.

campolife

I do have a Spanish solicitor who has confirmed in writing that everything is legal, above board and that permissions were granted before construction commenced.

However as I needed to return to the UK prior to it's completion the idea was that we would delay registering until it was sold. They have told me now that the land and house can be brought together and registered on the deeds just before we are due to return. The purchase taxes etc and connection fees have already been paid to the Solicitor and is being held in their clients account.

Normally I would have kept on top of everything but really did think all was complete and that it would sell really quickly. Now cannot afford 5000€ + so need a less cost option.

SueG

Minefield. Taxes have to have be paid within a certain period of time of completion. So if they have not paid them you are accruing interest on a daily basis!!!!!

Fred James

The other thing to remember is that there is no way you will get connected without a Licence of First Occupation.

campolife

I think that is what my Solicitor means. The build will not be declared "complete" until shortly before we move back.

Think I understand re. cert of first occupation and the docs from a registered electrician. It's the getting cabled up in the first place which is concerning me.

I have emailed the Spanish electrician who did all the work in the building who is registered by the ministry and I have the estate agent who represented the builder trying to get in touch with the builder.

This is really a nightmare. Hope I wake up soon!!