WASHINGTON, D.C., Oct. 19 -- The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has signed two mandates with the Fondo de Inversiones de Venezuela (FIV) under which IFC will act as a general advisor in the privatization of the state-owned electricity sector and as a financial advisor in the sale of the first electric utility. IFC will work with FIV, the government agency responsible for carrying out the privatization of state-held assets, to review various strategies for privatizing the electric sector. IFC will also assist in the enactment of new regulations designed to attract private investors to the sector and develop a sequence for the sale of the electricity companies under FIV's trusteeship. In addition, IFC will advise FIV on the sale of the integrated electric utility serving Isla Margarita, off the country's northeast coast. This initial transaction is expected to serve as a model for subsequent privatizations of four state companies owned by FIV: Enelven, Enelco, Enelbar, and Cadafe and its affiliates, wh
ich include Planta Centro, Latin America's largest thermal generating plant. "IFC has mobilized private sector participation in numerous infrastructure privatizations in difficult country environments," said Mr. Philippe Liétard, Director of IFC's Corporate Finance Services Department, which oversees the Corporation's privatization programs. "This experience will help us attract the financial and technical resources necessary to ensure the long-term financial and operational integrity of the Venezuelan power system. Also, we expect privatization in this sector to generate momentum for further privatizations," he added. IFC has advised the governments of Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Colombia on the privatization of state-owned electricity assets and has invested in numerous private power projects throughout the world. IFC is a member of the World Bank Group and is the leading multilateral source of equity and loan finance for private sector projects in developing countries.
