SIMFEROPOL, January 21. / TASS /. The decision to nationalize Krymenergo is made in the interest of Crimea's residents, Sergey Aksyonov, head of the region, said on Wednesday. The energy company belongs to Ukrainian oligarch Rinat Akhmetov.
"I am positive that this decision will be met with enthusiasm by the residents of Crimea," Aksyonov said. "You know how Krymenergo has been working recently — double advance payments, real money extortion from businesses under various pretenses. This structure has become something that one way or the other has been defrauding residents of Crimea. We believe, that energy should be in the hands of the government, and in this case, our actions are primarily in the interests of Crimea and Russia," he explained.
The Crimean State Council has unanimously decided to nationalize Krymenergo, one of the largest energy companies on the peninsula, at a special meeting on Wednesday morning.
After several power outages on the peninsula at the end of December 2014, Crimea Head Sergey Aksyonov promised to take "organizational measures" against Krymenergo officials. "The company specialists did not interfere in situations in which it was necessary to make manual adjusts. Some parts of the peninsula had no light for 8-10 hours, while others had no shortage at all," Aksenov told journalists. He also apologized to the residents of Crimea for Krymenergo's work.
According to official figures, Krymenergo employs six thousand people. The main objective of the company is to provide consumers with electricity in Crimea. The company services 27 thousand square kilometers.