Electricity? Maimon? - FREE ! ! !

gringosabroso

New member
Oct 16, 2004
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I eat lunch in Maimon occasionally; it has a lot of nice seafood restaurants; most are clean, have decent service, & are not expensive. I ate at 1 [nameless] restaurant recently. The owner, a Dominican American, & I discussed [what else?] crime & electricity.
He informed me that neither he nor anyonce else in Maimon had ever paid an electic bill! EVER! Why? Because neither he nor anyone in Maimon had ever received an electric bill. EVER!!
Maimon is "served" exceptionally well evidently by Edenorte. There are the regular, frequent, long lasting black outs. I estimate that 3,000 - 4,000 people live in Maimon; there is a huge hotel; 15 - 20 restaruants. My friend said the electric company - Edenorte - was "getting around to sending bills" one day.
Can this be true? Why? What business would literally give away its services, including electricity, for years, decades? Without ever requesting payment.?
Do any other towns receive universal free electricity? For decades?
Knowledgeable responses, esp. from Edenorte, welcomed.
Maybe the onwer was pulling my leg? He seemed honest & sincere. But, . . . he is a Dominican; I am a Gringo?
 

Conchman

Silver
Jul 3, 2002
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www.oceanworld.net
The 'huge' hotel you are referring to is the RIU complex? They supply their own electricity.

That the town would get free electricity for years would not surprise me. This is one of the reasons for the power problem in this country, because many people are 'hooked up' free and others have to foot their bill.
 

Tom F.

Bronze
Jan 1, 2002
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You will find that the year preceding an election many smaller towns and rural areas have the grid extended by the local politicians to win votes. The main wires, posts and transformers are usually paid for by the old CDE, now who knows where the money would come from, Than everyone is responsible to connect to the transformer on their own. I've even seen some areas have it taken directly to the homes. Well connected people in the community and influencial people in urban area with fincas in the campo make this happen. No one has a meter and sometimes a CDE person would visit, say you had 3 bulbs, a fan, and a black and white TV, you will pay RD$30/mth. The price would never change even though probably 10X the electricity is now being used since the initial visit.

I really thought most of this would have been cleaned up by now. I know of areas where meters were installed.
 

Spirit7

New member
Aug 26, 2004
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This is very common

I have had a property in a mountain near La Vega and after trying to get Edenorte to come install a meter 10 or more times, I gave up and have been getting free electricity for 3-1/2 years. Most of the 30 or 40 houses in the poor, rural community don't pay and the 2 or 3 that pay's bills are only around 300 pesos or 10 dollars.

I lived in a rented house in Bani for a year and never received a bill and most of my neighbors did not get any either.

Why do you think this country has problems?