The Dominican Electricity Industry Association (ADIE) says that the government power arrear now stands at US$776,830,262. An ADIE release says that receiving payments is the only way to guarantee that the supply of power will continue and electricity sustainability in the short term. The debt corresponds to arrears for four months.
The organization says that the debt is for energy supplied and consumed and the resources are committed to pay for the fuel and to continue operating the power plants, pay debtors and renew expired lines of credit.
ADIE says the delay in payment causes serious cash flow problems, affecting fuel supplies.
The government pays a high cost for the arrears. As reported, the power companies charge interest rates of around 10% to the CDEEE for overdue bills.
As reported in El Dia, Ruben Jimenez Bichara, executive vice president of the CDEEE acknowledged the debt. He said the electricity sector operates with a monthly deficit of around US$100-US$120 million. The government subsidy to the electricity sector is more than US$1.3 billion a year. He said that the power generators bill around US$190-US$200 million a month, but only recuperate US$120 million. He added that the power distributors recover around US$50 million in payments made by consumers, and the rest comes from the National Budget.
http://eldia.com.do/generadores-alertan-deuda-del-gobierno-afecta-servicio-electrico/296516/Deuda-con-generadores-en-US776-Millones