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dark days of energy privatization in colombia

censat agua viva/friends of the earth colombia

One corporate tool for gaining greater control over energy is the WTO's General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS, see page 8) agreement. GATS will reduce the ability of governments to decide who owns and runs national energy services, and will restrict their capacity to prioritize social and environmental goals including equity, affordability and environmental sustainability. People in Bogotá and on the Caribbean coast of Colombia experienced the adverse affects of energy privatization when the Spanish corporations Endesa and Union Fenosa took over electricity generation, transmission, distribution and commercialization in a privatization process starting in 1998. Following privatization, electricity prices for some people rose 500 percent above the initial average price.

There have also been arbitrary suspensions of services to homes, public hospitals and community centers, and 1,750 electricity workers lost their jobs. The situation is generating serious social tensions, especially in underprivileged areas. World Bank and IMF advice initially prompted this privatization, but only the GATS process can lock such changes firmly in place, ensuring corporate windfalls.