The housing sector consumes more than half of the country's power, with 70 percent of this consumption taken up by the use of air-conditioners, according to the 2010/2011 annual report of the Electricity and Cogeneration Regulatory Authority (ECRA). It said 94 percent, or 4.6 million of the Kingdom's subscribers, pay on average less than SR500 a month for electricity. In its report, ECRA said that the Kingdom has the Arab world's largest electricity network. The load on the network in 2010 at peak time was 45,661 megawatts (MW) out of a total production of 55,256 MW. The Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) produces 74 percent of total power, the Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC) nine percent and the rest is supplied by other producers. The SEC is responsible for power transmission in the Kingdom, with the exception of industrial areas provided for by the Marfeq Company for Electricity and Water in Yanbu. The power is transmitted from power-generating stations via 42,436 kilometers of high-voltage overhead lines, in addition to 3,743 kilometers of underground lines. The number of subscribers has risen by 5.2 percent in the fiscal year 2010/2011 to almost six million (5,997,553) subscribers. The ECRA report indicated that houses accounted for more than half of total consumption at 51.2 percent and constituted 35 percent of the SEC's income. The industrial sector stood at 18.2 percent, commercial sector 13.6 percent and government 13.4 percent. Electricity consumption patterns are based on population size and industrial activity in the regions. The report indicated that the Eastern Province topped regional industrial use at 45 percent of total consumption because of the presence of Saudi Aramco and the Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC).
