Bishop denies gridlock on Dominican Republic Electricity Pact

Santo Domingo.- The presidentof Dominican Republic´s Economic and Social Council (CES) on Thursday denied thatthe talks leading to the Electricity Pact have gridlocked.

Monsignor Agripino Nuñezmade it clear however that yjr sectors taking part in the workshops have yet toforward a definitive proposal.

He said to achievesuccesses all sectors must work to benefit the nation and not particular interests."That is not so that there´s no advance, there are still problems thatneed solving, all sectors must work for the benefit of the country."

The prelate said he expectsthe issues essential to the agreement will be identified in the next session.

"There´s still noposition neither by the power sector, nor from distributors and powercompanies, nonetheless now comes a stage when we will see what needs to be doneto achieve the mutual agreement on behalf of the Dominican population," Nuñezsaid.

He announced that the nextmeeting is set for February 9 between the parties involved in the pact. “Itseems however that the path toward a reliable and sustainable electricitysystem for all has reached the discussion stage among the actors convened bythe executive order.”

The electricity system´skey areas of distribution, generation, transmission, regulatory andinstitutional framework, users among others would be discussed during thisstage.

The several work tablesinclude technical delegates from each agency convened by the executive order; invitedpeople and experts Government, Civil Society and the Business Sector.