The renegotiation of Annex C and the Itaipu 2023 rate under analysis

This Chamber of Senators release was published using machine translation.

The Permanent Commission of the National Congress held its first session in this period, under the presidency of Deputy Ángel Paniagua. The meeting was held through the virtual platform, from the session room of the Lower House.

At the beginning of the meeting, Senator Stephan Rasmussen moved to approve the resolution projects that request reports from various institutions.

The following requests for reports were unanimously approved and communicated to those who correspond: to the Ministry of Education and Sciences, presented by Senator Abel González and those presented by Senator Miguel Fulgencio Rodríguez, requested from the Ministry of Public Works and Communications, the Ministry of Public Health and Social Welfare and the Social Welfare Institute (IPS).

Another approved request was presented by deputy Ángel Paniagua, who requested a report from the Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP).

GUESTS

On the other hand, in order to analyze the issues "Renegotiation of Annex C of the Itaipu Treaty" and the "Itaipu Tariff 2023", guests attended: Félix Sosa, director of the National Electricity Administration (ANDE); Julio Arriola, Minister of Foreign Relations; Manuel María Cáceres, Paraguayan director of Itaipu Binacional and advisers.

Foreign Minister Julio Arriola presented a report on the "Renegotiation of Annex C of the Itaipu Treaty" and mentioned that the negotiation process will begin on August 13, for which a roadmap will be taken into account, in which the way of working, with the objective of advancing the points to favor the electrical sovereignty of Paraguay.

"It is imperative to affirm that the most important and convenient thing for the country is the full use of capacities for the socioeconomic development of the national territory," he remarked in his speech.

In addition, he expressed that all negotiations will have full participation and monitoring of society, through the National Congress. He also stressed that, during the renegotiation process, mechanisms will be sought to favor both countries.

In this regard, Senator Daniel Rojas consulted on the way of working and the form of coordination regarding the negotiation of Annex C with the incoming government of the neighboring country, to which the national chancellor mentioned that with the road map that is in place, the detailed analysis of the issue will continue, adding that it will be a long process.

For her part, Deputy Kattya González stated that it is extremely important that Paraguay, through its representatives, have a solid legal position, in order not to destabilize what has already been worked on in advance.

ITAIPU REPORT

Next, Manuel María Cáceres, general director of Itaipu Binacional presented the report regarding the "Itaipu Tariff 2023" and mentioned that numbers for the current year are not yet available, but work is being done on it.

In this sense, he explained that with the departure of the government of Jair Bolsonaro, former president of Brazil, the negotiations of the Binational rate will have to be resumed and at certain points restarted, for this reason it is estimated that there will be delays in the rate.

"The needs to meet the development plans are great, but with great satisfaction we can say that they were invested in improvements for the country," he said.

In addition, he affirmed that there are no impositions regarding the rate from Brazil and remarked that the amount will be worked and regulated from the corresponding institutions in the national territory.

In this regard, Senator Lilian Samaniego made a query regarding the mode of payment of Itaipu's debt in the years established between 2010 and 2017. In this sense, the director of the entity responded that the disbursements were made in a timely manner, taking into account account the commitment to eliminate the debt in the year 2023.

Senator Miguel Fulgencio Rodríguez, vice-president of the Permanent Commission, in use of the word, referred to the work carried out in the governments since 1989 to pay off Itaipu's debt and affirmed that thanks to the seriousness with which the disbursements it was possible to lower the rate of the entity. He also added that, in order to carry out a productive deal with Brazil, all points must be negotiated without distinctions or fears, presenting solid proposals and analyzed in advance.

ANDE REPORT

For his part, Félix Sosa, president of the National Electricity Administration (ANDE), gave a presentation referring to the "Itaipu Tariff 2023" and stated that the installed power in the country in terms of Itaipu Binacional's energy production It is equivalent to 7000 MW, for which the work carried out from this institution is exhaustive, taking into account the number of personnel distributed throughout the country.

In addition, he mentioned that energy production in all entities depends on hydrological and climatic conditions; both factors are relevant in the elaboration of electrical energy, he remarked.

"To analyze the economic factors with certainty, first, you must have a free availability of energy, in addition to obtaining a competitive rate within the market," said the head of ANDE.

At the time of making the respective consultations, Senator Daniel Rojas intervened, who urged the ANDE authorities to reduce losses from 30% to 15%, with the aim of having more capacities and items to optimize and guarantee the implementation in practice of the production of electrical energy.

Likewise, the deputy Celso Kennedy consulted what the investment would be before the amount of the current year of the entity. In this regard, the head of ANDE responded that the contracting of powers, the hydrological situation and optimal operation are very important, as the main factors for obtaining a competitive rate.

POSTPONED

The Declaration projects requested by Senator Abel González were postponed: the first one is the one “Which urges the Executive Power-Ministry of Foreign Relations to send to the National Central Government of the Federative Republic of Brazil the final report “Special examination of the debt of the Itaipu Binational Entity, issued by the Comptroller General of the Republic of Paraguay" and, the second document is "Which urges the Superior Court of Electoral Justice to carry out citizen practices with voting machines (MV), with the incorporation of the Photographs of the elected candidates in the party internships”.