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dam-l (Fwd) LS: Frei Wrestles with Energy Issue




------- Forwarded Message Follows -------
Date sent:      	Fri, 23 Apr 1999 10:34:37 -0700
From:           	Monti Aguirre <monti@irn.org>
Subject:        	LS: Frei Wrestles with Energy Issue
To:             	irn-biobio@apc.org

*** 
CHIP NEWS 
**** 
Date: April 23, 1999 
Subject:  Frei Wrestles with Energy Issue 
Sources:  La Nacion; La Tercera 
**** 
                    FREI WRESTLES WITH ENERGY ISSUE 

                    President Eduardo Frei, back in Chile after an nine-
day 
                    working trip to Europe, held urgent meetings 
Thursday with 
                    cabinet members to address the nation's continuing 
energy 
                    shortage. A special presidential address outlining 
new 
                    government measures to deal with the issue is 
expected this 
                    weekend or early next week.  

                    Rationing was first implemented for a two-week 
period in 
                    November, and a new round of rationing, marked by 
                    blackouts of up to two hours a day in alternating 
sectors of 
                    Santiago and much of the rest of Chile, has been in 
effect 
                    since late March. Authorities say the blackouts could 
last 
                    through June, depending on rain.  

                    Criticism is aimed at both energy suppliers, for failing 
to 
                    invest in alternative energy production, and at 
government 
                    officials, for relegating the issue to the back burner 
for too 
                    long a period.  

                    Senate president and presidential aspirant Andres 
Zaldivar 
                    suggested Thursday that Congress could give Frei 
                    "extraordinary powers" within 48 hours to deal with 
the 
                    issue, suggesting that provisional thermal energy 
generators 
                    be brought to Chile in the short term, and that Chile's 
power 
                    grid be integrated with Argentina's in the mid to long-
term.  

                    Zaldivar, a Christian Democrat (PDC), also proposed 
new 
                    legislation regulating vertical integration of energy 
                    companies, an apparent allusion to Endesa Spain's 
                    imminent acquisition of power generating company 
Endesa 
                    Chile, and harshly criticized Ricardo Lagos for ceding 
water 
                    rights to Endesa Chile during his tenure as Public 
Works 
                    Minister. Zaldivar and Lagos face-off May 30 in a 
presidential 
                    primary held by the parties of the governing 
Concertacion 
                    alliance.  

                    Party for Democracy (PPD) Sen. Sergio Bitar earlier 
this 
                    week called on Congress to enact legislation to give 
the 
                    government more authority over matters related to 
energy 
                    distribution and generation - responsibilities currently 
in the 
                    hands of the private sector - and to increase fines 
and 
                    sanctions power companies may face.  

                    Bitar, whose PPD is part of the governing 
Concertacion 
                    coalition and was founded by presidential candidate 
Lagos, 
                    also said the private-sector body that oversees power 
                    distribution matters, the CDEC, ought to be turned 
over to 
                    government control, or at least have public-sector 
                    representation because it currently serves only the 
power 
                    companies' interests. Bitar also called for an 
increase in the 
                    fines power companies face to as much as US$3 
million, 
                    compared to the current maximum of US$26,000. 
The 
                    measures suggested by Bitar are believed to be 
similar to 
                    those that Frei is expected to announce.  

                    PDC attorney Ramon Briones, a long-time critic of 
the 
                    nation's energy-sector regulatory system, blamed the 
power 
                    shortage on the lack of significant competition in the 
                    power-generation market, which is dominated by 
Endesa 
                    Chile and Gener, and the failure of lawmakers and 
the public 
                    to bring political pressure on the industry.  

                    Former Central Bank economist Marcel Claude, 
currently 
                    the director of the Terram Foundation, charged that 
Chile's 
                    power companies prefer to pay the relatively light 
fines 
                    associated with the power shortages rather than 
invest in 
                    high cost thermal power.  

                    Chile's energy sector was privatized during the 
Pinochet 
                    government under conditions that many critics say 
were 
                    extremely favorable to purchasers - all Pinochet 
government 
                    supporters.  

                    Despite all the criticism, public response to the 
situation has 
                    been relatively tame until late this week. The 
municipality of 
                    Nunoa created a legal team to facilitate citizen 
complaints 
                    against the power companies for losses and 
inconvenience 
                    caused by the power shortages and more than 130 
                    complaints were filed Thursday.  

                    More are expected to follow.  

                    In related developments, a new Siemens rotor for the 
                    Nehuenco thermoelectric generator arrived in Chile 
mid-week 
                    from Germany, sped up by Frei's personal 
intervention during 
                    his visit to Germany this past week. The device will 
allow the 
                    generator to enter back into operation sooner than 
expected, 
                    but it won't resolve the nation's energy woes, officials 
say.  
                                                                        
             *The End* 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
Monti Aguirre 
Latin American Campaigns  
International Rivers Network					 
1847 Berkeley Way					 
Berkeley, CA. 94703 USA 
Phone:	 510 . 848.11.55 and 707 . 591 .91.49 
Fax:	 510 . 848.10.08 
e-mail:  monti @irn.org 
http://www.irn.org 
Dianne Murray, Coordinator/Webmistress
Dam-Reservoir Working Group; Ottawa, Canada
Dam-Reservoir Impacts and Information Archive
http://www.sandelman.ottawa.on.ca/dams