Costa Rica News – Costa Rica we have a problem! This problem is causing a snowball effect of higher costs in the country and more poverty. The problem is Recope.
Old Logo on Left, New Logo on Right
Recope, Costa Rica’s non-refining oil monopoly has mismanaged its business, jacked up gas prices and is in dire need of being dissolved allowing competition or some entity that actually knows how to conduct business. Also perhaps they should not spend over $2,000 on a new logo (seen to the left) that could be have been done better for $5 on Fiverr.
The Refinadora Costarricense de Petróleo (Recope) – state refinery – recorded a financial loss of ¢13 billion colones or about $24 million in the first nine months of 2015, according to its interim financial statements.
The state company blames the loss to low international oil prices (lowering the selling price of fuels), coupled with lower domestic consumption of petroleum products. At least that is the explanation by Sara Salazar, president of Recope and Edgar Gutierez, Recope’s chief financial officer.
However, Gutierez emphasized that the company is in the process of completing its financial statement for 2015 and despite the preliminary figure, the year would close with only a loss of ¢6 billion colones or about $11 million dollars. So in the last 3 months of 2015 they made $13 million? Is this true or is it some funny accounting?
This seems quite interesting considering the employees get their bonuses in December…….
The CFO explained lower fuel prices and sales led to less revenue, yet the company’s operating costs were not reduced, with the major expense being its payroll for 1,700 employees and severance payments, both linked to the collective agreement.
The payroll represents 56% of total expenditures.
According to the interim report, despite the reduced income, expenses rose 21% in the first nine months of 2015.
The statement also shows that lower demand for bunker fuel for thermal electric generation by the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) resulted in a drop of 5% in sales, in the first nine months of 2015, ICE buying 97.500 barrels less, with respect to the same period in 2014.
Here is a grand idea, run this like a business. If income is down do not increase expenditures and pass those on to the consumer in Costa Rica.
But this will never happen……
From QCostaRica Edited by Dan Stevens