Plan to make PPC more attractive to investors

New legislation to be tabled in October will free Greece's Public Power Corporation (PPC) from the obligations and restrictions that apply to state utilities so that the state-controlled electricity firm can operate as a listed company and expose itself to market competition, Energy Minister Kostis Hatzidakis told Kathimerini's Sunday edition. 

Hatzidakis was speaking hours after PPC's board approved a 500-million-euro rescue plan to tackle a dramatic cash shortfall at the company (PPC is burdened with around 2.5 billion euros of unpaid bills) that includes a hike in electricity rates and a reduction in discounts offered to customers who pay promptly. 

He said plans to overhaul the ailing utility include the involvement, in the medium term, of private shareholders and cooperation with third parties as the company expands into renewables.
"Apart from keeping PPC...