Power cuts are expected it various areas of Greece and at various times as unionists of Public Power Company (DEH) launched their strike and switched off 13 electricity producing units. According to DEH and DEDHE (Power Distribution System) there will be power cuts of “maximum one hour” during daytime in order to meed electricity demands.
DEH warns citizens to take some precaution measures like not using elevators and handle with care electrical appliances, as restoration of electricity will occur suddenly.
Citizens are advised to avoid using appliances that consume a lot of electricity during 11 am – 4 pm and 8 pm-10 pm.
The schedule for power cuts can be seen in DEDHE’s official website. The website was facing some uploading problems from the moment it was announced that the power cuts schedule was uploaded…. The power cuts are planned to take place between 11 am and 2 pm, however, “the schedule for the power cuts is indicative and changes may occur,” DEDHE said in a statement.
For information about power cuts: DEDHE telephone line 210-6241860
For the time being the islands are exempted from the power cuts in order to avoid “harming tourism.”
The power cuts will occur as long as GENOP-DEH unionists are on strike.
“There is no danger of a blackout,” the head of the Spartakos union, Giorgos Adamidis, told Kathimerini. “We are going on strike at all of PPC’s production units and mines from Komotini to Arcadia but nobody said that all the plants would go off line at the same time. The action will be staggered because nobody wants the country to be plunged into darkness.”
PPC will be forced to import more expensive electricity from abroad in order to ensure there is an adequate supply for as long as the strikes go on.
GENOP-DEH launched 48-hour rolling strikes at 00:01 Wednesday, July 3td 2014, in order to protest the selling of 30% of PPC and its privatization.
The privatization of the so-called “little DEH” has sparked a frontal confrontation between the coalition government and main opposition party SYRIZA. The left-wing party claims, that ‘the government sales off public good’.
The government claims that the sale is “for the benefit of the country and the citizens as it will boost competitiveness.”
“There is no way I would allow fanatic populists and those who create false impressions to take away our right to progress,” said Prime Minister Antonis Samaras adding “Privatizations, among other things, are connected to our right to progress.”
Of course, everybody knows that the sale of part of PPC is one of the demands from the Troika to the debt-ridden country.
30% of PPC will be sold to private investor and 2,000,000 PPC-customers will be transferred to the new and privatized company whether they want or not. They will be obliged to remain in the new company for a couple of months – six months, I think.
Nevertheless, temperatures are expected to reach at least 36° Celsius today, the concrete will ‘boil’ at noon and early afternoon and we are not supposed to use appliances and devices that ‘eat’ a lot of electricity.
Therefore if I am suspiciously silent, it is either I have melt due to power cut and/or power saving or I’m out at the beach.
More on PPC privatization here.
Schedule for Power Cuts on Thursday, July 3rd 2014 see also here
PS Greek consumers saw the impressive benefits in the milk market: prices remained the same despite the government claiming otherwise. In a country where ‘price cartels’ are the rule, there can be no progress in that sense, right?
