The federation of unions representing practically all employees of the Public Power Corp. (PPC) on Tuesday declared a strike on Oct. 19 and a protest rally against the utility’s decision to proceed with a 750-million-euro share capital increase.

With the country’s privatization agency and public assets holding company promptly announcing that they will not participate in the share capital increase, the state’s majority stake in PPC (51 percent) will drop to around 34 percent – the reason for the sharp reaction by unions and the political opposition in the country.

The strike will coincide with a general assembly of PPC shareholders.

The federation’s (GENOP) board members also announced a public awareness campaign to brief consumers and social partners, along with local governments, over the negative impact, as they claim, from the development.

On its part, the center-right government has sternly defended the decision, pointing to a successful rescue of the one-time electricity monopoly in the country, the level of funding expected from private investors and the fact that the state will still remain PPC’s management.

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