Caracas (AFP) – Venezuela’s legislature on Tuesday approved a US-backed reform to open the country’s faltering electricity sector to private investment. Since the US ouster of Nicolas Maduro in January, interim leader Delcy Rodriguez has complied with Washington’s calls to open up nationalized industries to foreign investment.
The latest reform measure was approved unanimously on Tuesday by the National Assembly, which is led by Delcy Rodriguez’s brother, Jorge Rodriguez. Opposition lawmaker Antonio Ecarri said the reform was necessary “in the face of collapse” of the state power grid and “the disastrous policy that resulted from the previous law,” he told AFP. Jorge Rodriguez insisted during the legislative session that the state-owned power company would continue to subsidize utilities “above all for the most vulnerable.”
Following the nationalization of the power system in 2007, years of lack of investment and mismanagement have contributed to dire energy shortages. Much of the South American country now suffers prolonged blackouts, including in parts of the capital. “The power goes out on me every day,” said Nuris Medina, a 66-year-old lawyer who lives on the outskirts of Caracas. “It’s a middle class area, imagine in the interior of the country, the public is having a lot of trouble with electricity.”
Jorge Rodriguez told reporters on Tuesday that the measure would “allow a private party to generate electricity and provide it in exchange for a set charge,” which should increase supply. Experts estimate the state power company generates around 12,000 megawatts, far below the amount needed to cover demand, which reached 16,400 megawatts in September.
In addition to the electrical grid, Rodriguez’s administration has also opened Venezuela’s mining and oil sectors up to private investment. Caracas signed a massive oil deal with Washington in September, giving it access to more than 65 billion barrels — almost 20 percent — of oil in Venezuela, which holds the largest proven reserves in the world.
On a trip to Venezuela to oversee the signing of the accord, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright stressed the importance of fixing the country’s electricity sector. The oil sector also needed electricity to function, he added. “You need them both,” he said, voicing optimism given the “existing (electricity) infrastructure” in Venezuela that he believes can be put to use again under a five-year plan.
© 2024 AFP
