Puerto Rico Chamber of Commerce (CCPR) president José "Che Julio" Aparicio Laspina said the island’s private sector is in an "economic crisis" and an "economic emergency" because of rising energy costs. In an interview on the program Normando en la Mañana on NotiUno 630, he asked the Oversight Board (JSF) to authorize use of an emergency fund to mitigate the impact for "at least three or four months."
We are living an economic hurricane.
He warned that the biggest impact will come with the next, already-approved electricity rate increase. Aparicio Laspina blamed several external factors and said, "We are living an economic hurricane." He added that he had not seen a similar level of anxiety among merchants since the financial crisis during the Barack Obama administration.
He asked that government and the private sector meet immediately, as happened during the water crisis, with the Oversight Board included in that dialogue table. He said the Chamber has broadened its call beyond energy to the economy as a whole, noting that hoteliers, builders and small merchants report that "it is too expensive to operate."
He demanded faster execution of already-permitted energy projects, including a substation whose permits, he said, were left signed by then-governor Pedro Pierluisi with no movement so far. The Chamber is also arranging meetings with the U.S. Department of Energy to obtain a list of pending energy projects and their assigned funds. He warned that businesses "are beginning to make decisions to close," while saying he remains optimistic the crisis can be resolved as the water one was.