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Fondul Proprietatea wants to prevent Hidroelectrica from delivering energy to domestic customers, at low prices, and wants to keep the company captive to big suppliers, the Minister of Economy, Energy and Business Environment Virgil Popescu wrote on Facebook on Thursday.
"Romanians' interest comes first! I asked Hidroelectrica to communicate the volume of investments made in recent years, when they had high prices for electricity, given that they used this excuse. I would therefore like to address a question to the director of Hidroelectrica, to the representatives of Fondul Proprietatea and to the representatives of the Romanian state in the Supervisory Board of Hidroelectrica: where is that volume of investments? Should I take it that it's a good thing that they didn't make investments to make big profits and pay dividends? Totally wrong, this type of policy is failed in the long run, and the interest of the Romanian state and of the Romanians is to have a strong company in the long run!" wrote Popescu.
The minister further claims that Hidroelectrica has a wrong sales policy and that, in fact, it should deliver energy directly to the population and reminded that there is the possibility of a cumulative vote that allows changing the entire management of a company at the request of a shareholder.
"And also, as long as I am the Minister of Economy, Energy and Business Environment, I will exercise the quality of shareholder for the benefit of Romanians and I will not allow any shareholder to censor my words!" the minister added.
He further accused Fondul Proprietatea of paying for articles in the press to make its message known. Attached to the minister's post there is a print screen with an article published by Hotnews, titled "Pizza is ready, it looks good, but not yet in the oven. Hidroelectrica and the stock market flotation," where the publication specifies that it is an article supported by Fondul Proprietatea.
He concludes his post by writing, in capital letters, that he supports the flotation of Hidroelectrica, with a share of 10% or 15%, this being one of the objectives he assumed as Minister of Economy, Energy and Business Environment.
In the press release previously sent to AGERPRES, Fondul Proprietatea draws the minister's attention to the fact that the law prohibits the direct involvement of the state as a shareholder in the management of the company. The statement of the Minister of Energy, Virgil Popescu, according to which Hidroelectrica could supply energy directly to the population at a much lower price, represents a violation of Emergency Ordinance 109/2011 on corporate governance in state companies, claims FP.
Hidroelectrica is the largest and cheapest energy producer in the country.
