We have a piece of land.  Rather than leaving it fallow we allow a local man to grow vegetables for a nominal rent.  Last week, being in the area, we drove by and found he has gone from a few vegetables to vegetable farming.  Good for him.  However, to irrigate his crop he has set up pumps to use water from the river at the bottom of the land which are connected to a pylon on the road by the gate.  As the photograph shows, the connection is fairly neat. 

How can I find out if the connection is legal, his consumption is metered and he is paying for it?  I would prefer avoiding the surprise of a hefty electricity bill when we retake possession of the land.  In case location makes any difference, the land is in Mae Teng, Chieng Mai province (about 35 km upstream from Chieng Mai). 

You would need to follow his electric line back to it's source...see where it connects to a source of power.

 

If his line connects on a line  at some point "downstream" your electric meter  then his electric usage is being recorded and will be part of your  electric bill...will be reflected in your monthly bill.  If his line connects "upstream" of your electric meter, then he has either tapped into someone else's metered lines.  Or before the line reach anyone's meters...kinda like tapping into the lines running along the poles.  No one will get billed if tapping in upstream of any electric meter.    If he is illegally tapping into power like this expect it to be camouflaged/concealed as best as he can.  I've seen that happen in my MIL's village numerous times. 

 

Another way is "if" your electric meter has the large spinning wheel whenever additional power starts to be used, like a pump turning and continuing to run, an air con turning on, a refrigerator motor turning on,  etc., if you look closely you can see that spinning wheel speed up just a little just as soon as that additional power starts to be drawn.     But you would need to be in a position where you can see your electric meter and see/hear when his pumps turn off and on in order to tell if the spinning wheel is speeding up and down.

1 hour ago, thaibook said:

I would prefer avoiding the surprise of a hefty electricity bill when we retake possession of the land.

 

Do you have an electric meter allocated to your piece of land.??

And how many pumps does he use. ??

 

I have an electric meter 5/15 for our bit of farmland and the bill is always zero because a household fridge, a well water pump, a storage tank water pump, and a couple of lights don't record enough to pay for the electric used. 

Pib, thank you for your detailed response.  When I am back in the area, in 10 days or so, I shall try to track the cable to see if it goes back to his house and take it from there.

 

Kwasaki, thank you for your input.  We do not have a meter, as far as I am aware and we have nothing that consumes electricity on the land.  I saw three pumps, but from what you are saying farmland is treated quite differently to residential properties where even one unit is invoiced.