EVN claims innocence in recent “electric pole war”

Electricity of Vietnam Group (EVN) has sent a document to government agencies to complain about their suffering.

EVN wrote that its system of electric poles has been seriously downgrade by “parasitic” telecommunication cables. For this reason, EVN plans no concessions on leasing prices of electric poles.

They also complained about accusations that EVN abuses its monopoly to hamper telecom firms.

EVN claims that the new leasing prices are a drastic but necessary measure designed to correct the hanging of telecom cables on electric poles and also to compensate partially EVN’s investment in electric poles and maintenance expenses that are rising.

EVN doesn’t discuss whether its new leasing prices are low or high, but grumbles about their suffering caused by telecom cables.

According to EVN, telecom cables affect the safe operation of power systems and the urban landscape. The group urgently requests ministries to guide telecom firms and also to help save EVN electric poles from the “spider webs” of telecom cables.

EVN emphasized that they have no reason to lower leasing prices. They claim that if VNPT and Viettel want to build their own poles, EVN sees no problem because they will then learn it is not an easy job. The poles require not only money, but also worker maintenance teams.

EVN also asked the Ministry of Industry and Trade to punish companies that illegally hang their cables on EVN poles or that hang cables unsafely.

An EVN official told VNExpress that telecom firms seem to live parasitically on others and “only complain when we charge higher leasing prices.”

The official also confirmed that while VNPT is still whining, its subsidiaries have signed contracts agreeing to the new prices. Only subsidiaries in Hai Phong, An Giang and Ca Mau have not signed new contracts. Other telecom companies like FPT, Viettel and Saigon Postel have also accepted the new charges.

Yet VNExpress investigations have revealed that telecom firms had to agree with EVN’s new prices because they have no choice.

A VNPT representative stated that VNPT subsidiaries did not accept EVN’s new prices. “They are forced to accept it,” he explained.

He also cited that that VNPT is pursuing a policy to continue negotiations with EVN on the principle of mutual benefits. This is the common policy for the whole system.

VNPT currently leases around 1.2 million electric poles to hang cables. If VNPT accepts the new prices, it will have to pay around 300 billion dong to EVN.

VietNamNet/VNE