BEL 2012-16 investment plan hits US$61mn

Belize Electricity's ( BEL) planned investment from July 1, 2012 through June 30, 2016 reaches 120mn Belizean dollars (US$61mn), according to the utility's full tariff review processing submission public notice. "As a consequence of the proposed investments and expected expenditures and costs contained in its submission, BEL has proposed adjustments to the approved rates and tariffs that would result in an overall average decrease of 3.4% in order for the company to generate adequate revenues to support its operations and its proposed investments." BEL said the Public Utilities Commission will deliver its initial decision by January 16, and that a public hearing will be held December 21. The public notice is available here In June, the government expropriated Fortis' (TSX: FTS) stake in the utility, which is Belize's principal power distributor, serving some 77,000 clients.