A scheme on switching from paper billing for electricity use to electronic billing was unveiled in Tehran by the Energy Ministry on Sunday.
Instead of issuing paper bills, electricity power distribution companies across the country will switch to electronic billing, ISNA reported.
The bills will be sent as text messages to subscribers who will be able to pay the bills by merely sending the 13-digit serial in the text bills to 10001121.
Energy Minister Reza Ardakanian said the plan will save time, reduce paper wastage and prevent environmental pollution.
“It also expands the government's electronic services and enhances billing management,” he said.
"Efforts are underway to collect the subscribers' phone numbers and upgrade the electronic billing systems in power companies. Electronic billing scheme will become operational throughout the country.”
Currently, the scheme is underway in Qazvin Province as a model project.
Paper bills are being issued by the province's Electricity Power Distribution Company for over 601,000 subscribers every two months.
Hossein Sabouri, the head of the company, said the scheme has been proposed to expand electronic services offered by the government.
The plan was earlier launched by the Telecommunications Company of Iran in 2018. The company offered a 24-hour free call gift for those who pay the bill online before the sixth of the Iranian month after receiving the text message.
The pilot phase of the scheme was launched in July 2018 and six million subscribers of the company have been receiving their bills via text messages. The company has 34 million subscribers.
ICT Minister Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi earlier told reporters that the nationwide switching to the electronic billing system for all utility services (including water, power, gas and landline and mobile phones) will save up to 14.4 trillion rials ($107.5 million) annually, which is currently spent on printing paper utility bills.
According to official reports, Iranians annually use 25 kilograms of paper per capita. Twelve trees are felled to make one ton of 100% non-recycled newsprint.
