Guinea-Bissau faces the threat of a power cut due to a debt with the supplier company that the Government intends to renegotiate, the Minister of Economy and Finance, Suleimane Seide, said this Wednesday.
The head of the Government presented data on the country’s financial situation this Wednesday and pointed out as one of the problems the bill of “about 17 million dollars” (15.8 million euros) to be paid to Karpower, the Turkish company that supplies electricity. to Guinea-Bissau, from a boat.
The minister announced that he will take measures to renegotiate the claimed debt and that a meeting is scheduled for Thursday with the company, which charges for the energy that the population neither consumes nor needs, according to the Government.
According to the guardianship, the situation is due to an addition to the initial contract that almost doubles the amount of energy supplied, from 17 megawatts to 30 megawatts per month.
“But the country does not consume 30, spending never exceeds 22 per month, which means that it is paying around eight per month, which are billed and not consumed,” he stated.
“It was this situation that led us to have bills that EAGB (Eletricidades e Águas da Guiné-Bissau) could not pay and to have this situation almost threatening to cut off the energy supply,” he added.
The new Government, which took office a little over a month ago, is, as it has said, “working to negotiate with the company” and already has “a meeting scheduled for tomorrow (Thursday).”
The minister promised more details after the “first round of negotiations”, but stressed that “the solution here necessarily involves renegotiating the contract.”
“Set the contract at values that can be bearable and sustainable for EAGB. There will be no other way out,” he stressed.
Electricity supply is guaranteed in Guinea-Bissau through a floating power plant (ship) belonging to a Turkish company, which provides this service to several African countries.
Source: TSF
