President Hipolito Mejia says he will not buckle under pressure from German and British agencies that have lined up to support the power generation company, Cogentrix, and its efforts to seek payment of a US$39-million debt owed by the Dominican government. The government is in a bind because, as stated by Finance Minister Jose Lois Malkum, the power plant costs more money to operate than to have it shut down, as is currently the case. The Mejia administration seeks to alter this, however, with the renegotiation of the contract that was originally signed during the Fernandez administration. ?If Cogentrix is not willing to negotiate then we will not pay them, and if they don?t like it then they can leave,? said President Mejia yesterday.
The German and English agencies announced this week that if the Mejia government refuses to comply with the international contracts, the country?s (Dominican Republic) credit rating would be adversely affected.
Until the Dominican government presents the problem to an international organization and receives legal authority to renegotiate the contract, it is obliged to continue paying Cogentrix, according to economist Pedro Silverio, director of the Cenantillas economic think tank center of the Pontificia Universidad Catolica Madre y Maestra, as reported in El Caribe newspaper.
