Congress Debate

A Liberal congresswoman confirmed discussions with US diplomats about Honduras's electric-sector reform and US investment opportunities, saying the US has made clear it has no interest in privatizing the state utility ENEE.

Cohep, Honduras's main private-sector organization, rejected any involvement in a National Congress member Adolfo Ráquel's electricity-sector reform proposal, saying it has not reviewed or endorsed the initiative and will not be held responsible for its technical, legal, or financial implications.

Congress will weigh competing plans to reorganize the state power utility into separate generation, transmission, and distribution units, with the Liberal Party and the government differing on asset ownership, debt responsibility, and long-term contracts.

The National Congress heard from the ENEE director and energy regulator on annual contract renewals for 30, 50, and 80 megawatts of electricity, with lawmakers divided over whether the state utility has adequate funds to pay for the supply amid broader financial strain.

Vice President María Antonieta Mejía has called on lawmakers to hold a technical debate on proposed reforms to the state-run electricity company ENEE, which faces losses of about 16 billion lempiras (roughly $640 million) and is hampering public investment in education and infrastructure.

A National Party congressman says proposed reforms to Honduras's energy law aim to rescue the state utility ENEE from financial collapse—it loses about 1.5 billion lempiras monthly—and denies the measure includes privatization, calling reports of a selloff false.

The head of Honduras's electoral commission has proposed eliminating the unanimity requirement for decisions by the electoral council and electoral court, replacing it with simple-majority voting to speed up electoral processes, though opposition parties worry it could weaken consensus-building.

Lawmakers remain divided on proposed reforms to Honduras's state electric utility, with some demanding modifications or deletions to specific articles and disagreement over whether modernization requires privatization.