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BUSINESS & ECONOMICS
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| Monday, May 15, 2006 Online Edition 17 |
Cohep requests change of labor schedule Proposals to promote a culture of power saving will be put to the Government in the next few days. The Honduran Council of the Privada Company (Cohep) said the power policy would include a change of labour schedule and consumption habits. Mario Canahuati, president of Cohep, estimated the plan would save the country about $20 million a year. Cohep wants to see the National Electric Energy Company strengthened, as well as a reduction in technical losses and better power saving measures. Some industrialists feel the recent changing of the hour should be accompanied by modifications to the labour schedule. They propose that some organisations, like private banks, work a Tuesday to Saturday week, to improve traffic problems and fuel consumption. El Heraldo Dunkin Donuts announces investment Dunkin Donuts has announced an investment of at least $18 million in the construction of 30 new premises in Honduras. Nubia Towers, the company's manager of trade, told journalists the expansion project included a new $1 million centre of production in Ceiba, the Carribean. Towers revealed the company produces at least 600,000 donuts a month in the country. He added that the opening of the new stores would increase the company's workforce in Honduras by 25 per cent. However, he did not say how many people Dunkin Donuts currently employs in Honduras. El Heraldo Spanish industries look to invest in Honduras Spanish companies have said they are interested in investing in Honduras's tourism. A group of Honduran industralists set off last Monday to El Salvador for meetings with a Spanish delegation headed by Prince Felipe de Borbón. The Spanish Official Chamber of Commerce confirmed the prince was presiding over a meeting in the capital, San Salvador, on Tuesday. It was designed to further links between Central American countries and Spanish companies and shareholders. The prince was in Central America this week for the inauguration of new Costa Rican president, Oscar Aryan Sanchez. President of chamber, Panayotti Robert, added: "The Spaniards are very interested in investing in Honduras at the moment. Some have smaller investments and they will be trying to take advantage of the opening of the Free Trade Agreement with the United States, which would allow them easier access to the North American market." La Tribuna Energy renegotiations could save 500 millions Before heading for Europe, President Manuel Zelaya Rosales, met with executives of thermal electricity companies. The meeting was to open talks on a re-negotiation of sales contracts that could generate an annual saving of 500 million lempiras to the National Electrical Energy Company (ENEE). It was established that the parameters the companies decide on must be suitable and based on a revision of sales contracts from them to the Government A result of the governor's meeting with the electricity generating companies of fossil fuels could be that prices are lowered when they are sold to ENEE. La Tribuna The company Petro'leos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA) is highly interested in buying the Honduran petroleum distribution company, Petro'leo (DIPPSA), valued at one billion lempiras. However, DIPPSA's president, Henry Arevalo, has denied the company is for sale. PDVSA confirmed that it is interested in acquiring the capital and stock of the only import Honduran fuel company, Company executives expressed their interest in DIPPSA to the Secretary of Labor, Rixi Moncada, during a visit he made to Venezuela. La Tribuna
Decameron interested in Tela Bay Leisure company Decameron Resorts has expressed an interest in building new hotels in Tela Bay. The Minister of Tourism, Ricardo Martinez, met with investors SUCCESS to discuss development ideas. Decameron Resorts announced its interest in acquiring a large amount of land for the construction of hotels in Tela Bay. In a note sent to the Honduran Institute of Tourism, the company explained it would also be interested in being involved in a masterplan for the general development of Tela Bay, which includes hotels, villas, a golf course, and commercial and recreational areas. El Heraldo |
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OPPORTUNITY |
| Monday, May 8, 2006 Online Edition 16 | ||
Japanese study confirms oil in Honduras According to a study carried out by Japanese experts off the La Mosquitia coast, there is oil on Honduran territory. President Mel Zelaya confirmed the finding and said that his government is preparing an international bidding in order to exploit the deposit. He also said that there will be other studies looking for oil in the future. According to the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, Mayra Mejia, it is not certain that there are profitable amounts of oil but it looks very promising. Nicaragua is also planning to explore the oil fields in the area. The International Monetary Fund (IMF)is becoming increasingly worried about the financial situations of the state telephone company Hondutel and the state electricity company ENEE. Although measures have been adopted to solve the crisis of the ENEE, the results have not been satisfactory. IMF questioned the fact that the price rates haven't changed since 2000. In the case of Hondutel, the opening of the long distance call market will mean a loss of almost 750 million Lempiras during 2006. To compensate, IMF proposed a raise of the local phone call rates and a cut in salary expenditures. El Heraldo Reactivation of construction sector The road repairs and the execution of new housing projects will mean a reactivation of the country's construction industry according to the Honduran Chamber of Construction (Chico). The approval of the national budget will permit the development of new infrastructural and building projects that will generate new jobs, said Jose Leon Alvarez, vice-president of Chico. The construction industry employs some 250,000 workers directly and 125,000 people indirectly. El Heraldo Honduran economic growth on the rise Vice President Elvin Santos announced this week that economic growth is increasing. He noted that the textile industry in particular is strengthening due to increased investment in that area. Reports from the first economic trimester show that there has also been a rise in demand for construction materials, which indicates that the building industry is growing too. Santos asserted that the current government is generating employment and that the infrastructure of the country is steadily improving. The Vice President also added that the economic growth of the country can be diminished by confrontation between different social sectors and that this cannot be allowed to jeopardize the country's development. La Tribuna Many interested in selling fuel to Honduras American consultant Robert Meyeringh, hired by the Honduran government to facilitate an international bidding process to supply the country with fuel, said that there are between 25 and 40 companies interested in participating. Not only US companies have shown interest, but also companies from Venezuela, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Africa and Europe. La Tribuna |
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| Monday, May 1, 2006 Online Edition 15 | ||
Honduran businesses to benefit from China agreement A delegation of 110 Central American businesses pledged cooperation with China last week in Peking. China currently has no diplomatic relations in the region. The agreement came as the result of Costa Rica's "China Ya" business initiative, and the delegation comprised businessmen from Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Panama and Colombia. "This trip has been an unqualified success; we have signed some very advantageous contracts," claimed a spokesman for the initiative in a press release. Many of the businesses involved came from countries that have no previous economic links with China, despite strong relationships with Taiwan.
The upturn in the Chinese economy has impacted favourably on Honduras' zinc mining industry, and the country's exports of the metal. More and more products made in China require zinc, and this is one of the reasons, according to Renaud Adams, president of The American Pacific Mining Company, that the price of the metal has risen on an international level. The metal's price has been in freefall for the last three years, leading to tough measures being taken, such as the firing of employees. The recent increase in price is cause for optimism, and Adams hopes it will allow the industry to repair the damage and seek to renew and improve their infrastructure.
The Second National Congress of Exporters met last week and brought together business of all sizes from around the country. The Congress comes as preparation for the upcoming Free Trade agreement with the United States. Driven by the Secretary for Industry and Commerce, SIC, and supported by the Foundation for Investment and Development of Exports, FIDE, the meeting gave Honduran businessmen a chance to learn about choosing and negotiating with a distributor, and understanding international finance, and was of great help to those wanting to export their products to a new international audience. According to the Dominic Villeda, SIC's Director for the Promotion of Exports, the skills acquired will stand Hondurans in good stead not just for trade with the USA, but with businesses all over the Americas. After the meeting between delegations from Honduras and El Salvador last week to discuss the future of the "El Tigre" hydro-electric project, the Salvadorian representative claimed true progress had been made. "The specific area, San Antonio in the Department of Intibucá, has now been identified, and we are currently considering the people affected as part of the study into the social and environmental impact of this project. The 700 megawatt generator will cover an area of 70 squared kilometres, 50% on Honduran soil. Predicted costs - of which half will be paid by the Honduran government - have now risen to close to 1.5 billion dollars. |
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