NewsWhore
01-08-2010, 01:20 PM
The Dominican Republic Association of Industries believes that the State Electricity Corporation (CDEEE) ought to be autonomous, but that this would not be enough to weaken the grasp that politics has on decisions in the energy sector so that steps can be taken to resolve the problems that have dragged on for decades.
As reported in El Caribe, AIRD president Manuel Diez Cabral said that the buyback of the power distribution companies that were privatized in 1998 is a counter-reform and was a consequence of the predominance of politics in the sector and the lack of state regulation.
"We think that this decree can help remove politics from the electricity sector to continue strengthening institutional aspects. Board members cannot be appointed according to political convenience. While there are people on those boards who take decisions based primarily on political party interests, it will be difficult for management and specialists to advance to real solutions," he said.
Decree 923-09, issued by the President at the end of 2009, authorizes the State Electricity Corporation (CDEEE) to lead and coordinate all the state electricity companies' strategies, objectives and performances. The government is the owner of the power distribution, transmission and hydroelectric power generation companies. Decree 923-09 establishes that the CDEEE, through its board of directors, will prepare and approve the Integrated State Electricity Development Strategy (EIDEE) where general guidelines and integrated policies will be set for the development of the state electricity sector in the short, medium and long term. "The implementation, supervision and control of the fulfillment of the Integrated Strategy is responsibility of the executive vice presidency of the CDEE," says the decree. Last August, President Leonel Fernandez appointed businessman Celso Marranzini to replace long-term CDEEE vice president Radhames Segura.
Commenting on the decree, electricity expert Bernardo Castellanos said that it was issued because of structural weakness that Marranzini had identified in the management of other departments, especially the hydroelectric and transmission state companies.
One of the problems detected in the sector is that political patronage under former manager Radhames Segura had padded the payroll with people hired to meet political commitments. "It is evident that the executive vice president of the CDEEE was not receiving the desired support from the companies in line with his vision and action plan," said Castellanos in an interview with El Dia. He commented that Marranzini had been critical of the excessive number of people on the payroll and said he has only been able to dismiss 400 employees in the central unit.
In a column in El Caribe on 28 December, Andres Dauhajre, former economic advisor to President Hipolito Mejia, commented on the difficulties in reducing the electricity companies' payroll. He said that when Fernandez took office on 16 August, there were 1,029 employees in the Corporate Unit, the Unit for Rural and Sub-Urban Electrification (UERS) and the Blackouts Reduction Program (PRA) and security services. This number was already considered excessive. But by August 2009, when Marranzini replaced Radhames Segura, the CDEEE had 2,848 employees. He stresses that the payroll had increased almost fivefold, not including inflated fees for advisors or media contributions. He comments that the UERS had 136 employees in 2004, and five years later had 612. And the PRA had 83 employees in 2004, and five years later it had 1,238 employees.
Power distribution companies Edenorte and Edesur had 3,228 employees in August 2004, rising to 4,319 five years later. Dauhajre said that the payroll went from RD$45 million in August 2004 to RD$162 million, five years into the Fernandez administration.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#2)
As reported in El Caribe, AIRD president Manuel Diez Cabral said that the buyback of the power distribution companies that were privatized in 1998 is a counter-reform and was a consequence of the predominance of politics in the sector and the lack of state regulation.
"We think that this decree can help remove politics from the electricity sector to continue strengthening institutional aspects. Board members cannot be appointed according to political convenience. While there are people on those boards who take decisions based primarily on political party interests, it will be difficult for management and specialists to advance to real solutions," he said.
Decree 923-09, issued by the President at the end of 2009, authorizes the State Electricity Corporation (CDEEE) to lead and coordinate all the state electricity companies' strategies, objectives and performances. The government is the owner of the power distribution, transmission and hydroelectric power generation companies. Decree 923-09 establishes that the CDEEE, through its board of directors, will prepare and approve the Integrated State Electricity Development Strategy (EIDEE) where general guidelines and integrated policies will be set for the development of the state electricity sector in the short, medium and long term. "The implementation, supervision and control of the fulfillment of the Integrated Strategy is responsibility of the executive vice presidency of the CDEE," says the decree. Last August, President Leonel Fernandez appointed businessman Celso Marranzini to replace long-term CDEEE vice president Radhames Segura.
Commenting on the decree, electricity expert Bernardo Castellanos said that it was issued because of structural weakness that Marranzini had identified in the management of other departments, especially the hydroelectric and transmission state companies.
One of the problems detected in the sector is that political patronage under former manager Radhames Segura had padded the payroll with people hired to meet political commitments. "It is evident that the executive vice president of the CDEEE was not receiving the desired support from the companies in line with his vision and action plan," said Castellanos in an interview with El Dia. He commented that Marranzini had been critical of the excessive number of people on the payroll and said he has only been able to dismiss 400 employees in the central unit.
In a column in El Caribe on 28 December, Andres Dauhajre, former economic advisor to President Hipolito Mejia, commented on the difficulties in reducing the electricity companies' payroll. He said that when Fernandez took office on 16 August, there were 1,029 employees in the Corporate Unit, the Unit for Rural and Sub-Urban Electrification (UERS) and the Blackouts Reduction Program (PRA) and security services. This number was already considered excessive. But by August 2009, when Marranzini replaced Radhames Segura, the CDEEE had 2,848 employees. He stresses that the payroll had increased almost fivefold, not including inflated fees for advisors or media contributions. He comments that the UERS had 136 employees in 2004, and five years later had 612. And the PRA had 83 employees in 2004, and five years later it had 1,238 employees.
Power distribution companies Edenorte and Edesur had 3,228 employees in August 2004, rising to 4,319 five years later. Dauhajre said that the payroll went from RD$45 million in August 2004 to RD$162 million, five years into the Fernandez administration.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#2)