(Podogrica, 28 March 2012) – The latest petroleum price hike and the announced rise in electricity prices proves that the Government of Igor Lukšić is maintaining monopoly interests and working in the interest of tycoons, while citizens are forced to pay more.
Jugopetrol, years after its privatization, still has no competitors, while the Electric Power Company of Montenegro (EPCG) was capitalized and privatized while retaining its monopoly. Prime Minister Igor Lukšić publicly promised that the Government of Montenegro will secure at least one additional petrol distributor in order to avoid abuses – something that has yet to happen.
Following the privatization of EPCG, they promised that investments in the modernization of the distribution network would be made, which would minimize the need to pay for enormous technical losses of energy. Similar investments were promised when Jugopetrol was sold. However, in neither of these two monopolies were serious investments made, while their privatization agreements continue to be violated.
In the EPCG case, it is clear that one of the main beneficiaries of its partial privatization was the First Bank and Aco Đukanović, since it has retained €60-million in deposits from the Italian investor A2A (shoring up the bank’s liquidity instead of modernizing the network). Till today no investigation has been launched to account for why this money is still not being invested in modernizing the distribution network.
The only beneficiary from the Jugopetrol privatization was Mark Harrison, who was a consultant in the privatization process. Due to irregularities in the entire process criminal charges were filed with the Prosecutor’s Office, though no action was taken.
In both of these cases, following privatization the price of goods offered (electricity and petrol) has only risen.
Furthermore, till this day we do not have access to basic information on the privatization of Jugopetrol. What we do know about the formation of the electricity price, however, is worrying.
Similarly, while the Regulatory Agency for Energy (RAE) argues that the electricity price is set according to European rules, they are hiding from the public the fact that they intend to make the country’s citizens subsidize future investments in EPCG and Prenos instead of our new ‘strategic partners’ (A2A and Terna).
These planned investments include the construction of transmission lines for an undersea cable, which will then export our energy resources to Italy for enormous profits.
It is unclear why Lukšić and the RAE brought these “strategic” partners to the country, when we’re the ones that have to subsidize their investments while their money sits in the First Bank.
On top of all this, the Prime Minister has the temerity to hold lectures about how our only weapon is economic growth and so we would once again like to point out that that is his job and he should be doing it properly.
If economic growth was truly important for the DPS/SDP government they would not have allowed Oleg Deripaska to blackmail them, nor would they allow the former owners of the Nikšić Steelworks to threaten us with international arbitration courts, nor would they keep pilling up the millions in debts caused by failed privatization deals concluded by Milo Đukanović, Igor Lukšić, Branimir Gvozdenović, Branko Vujović and their brothers and sisters!
It is for these reasons that Igor Lukšić and his government need to immediately take steps to eliminate any kickbacks embedded within public utility prices or to resign since they are not willing to stand on the side of the citizens. We no longer have time to wait since everyday we receive news of new fees and higher bills as a result of their corruption.
