It was obvious to us all that if we lost two thirds of our tourism, and two thirds of our economy, our utility companies must also be losing a bundle, but we never heard a peep about it.
Today, we did.
Elmar lost 82% of its revenue. And it will take 4 to 5 years for the company to recover.
They sold less electricity, their fixed costs remained fixed, prices needed to go up to cover the huge deficit, then in addition, the few remaining customers found it hard to pay their bills.
What to do?
We told you last year.
Decentralize the production of energy, connect my girlfriend’s solar panels to the grid and let her produce her own energy in Paradera, she has been waiting for three years, for you to move.
Make us all responsible for the production of our own energy, stop resisting change. It is much cheaper per KWh to produce our own energy, and storage is coming along, batteries, are getting more efficient and cheaper.
True, the hotels will recover their volume, and you are making efforts to move toward a smart meter, whatever that is, but not fast enough.
I have been trying to install a pre-pay meter in Sabana Liber and the via dolorosa between DTI and a copy of the existing electrical plan, and Kadastrer, at Cumana for the bewijs, are delaying the project and taking the wind out of my sails.
And don’t you go raising prices, while paying huge salaries and granting deluxe benefits to your workers.
Elmar has been in charge since 1950, as the monopolist energy provider, with over 50,000 meters on the island, and suffering a monumental drop in sales, following a drop in hotel occupancy, as all its large clients, are now using one third of their previous consumption.
They promised to identify savings, and cut costs, meanwhile we had a few black outs, among them in the area where the new, just arrived 17,500 vaccines are stored.