Russia cuts off Belarus electricity

Russia’s power utility announced imminent plans yesterday to cut off electricity to cash-strapped Belarus after Moscow released the first tranche of a $3 billion bailout loan to its neighbour.

The decision by Inter RAO UES should not hit resource-starved Belarus too severely because it only receives a 10th of its electricity from its energy-rich neighbour.

But it adds another psychological blow to a nation of 10 million that this year has already seen its currency devalued by more than a third and inflation reach a staggering 32.6 per cent amid its worst crisis since the Soviet era.

The cut-off stems from a $54 electricity payments debt that resulted in a partial disruption in supplies earlier this month.

“It will go into effect at midnight (Tuesday 2000 GMT),” company media officer Nikolai Garelov told AFP.

The announcement was made as $800 million of Russian-orchestrated assistance reached Minsk – the first line of support to reach depleted state coffers since the crisis began in the winter.

The three-year package was agreed under strict conditions that include the government’s adoption of a wholesale privatisation programme.

Belarus has thus far failed to put its state firms up for sale. The loan’s release was imperilled further by strongman President Alexander Lukashenko’s vow to shut down Russian media outlets operating in Belarus.