MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Ancap back in the red after 5 years of Multicolor rule, Orsi says

Orsi announced a management overhaul that would not impact Uruguayan consumers

Uruguayan President Yamandú Orsi announced Friday that the state-owned fuel company Ancap recorded a loss of US$ 118 million last year under the opposition government of Luis Lacalle Pou, contrasting with a US$ 41 million profit in 2019 when the country was headed by the late Tabaré Vázquez of the currently ruling Broad Front (Frente Amplio - FA).

“After 10 years, we have negative numbers again in Ancap's balance sheet,” Orsi stressed. These numbers “have repercussions on the management, on the vision of the public enterprise, on the economy as a whole,” he added.

Ancap also faces a total debt of US$ 255 million, including a US$ 160 million loan from November 2024 authorized by the Multicolor administration.

Alongside Industry Minister Fernanda Cardona and Ancap President Cecilia San Román, Orsi emphasized that a management overhaul is planned to address the financial crisis, but it would not impact Uruguayan consumers.

Cardona highlighted significant losses in the cement business, which surged from US$ 2 million to over US$ 24 million, and noted a lack of management in this sector over the past five years.

“The first thing we had to do was, once the president of the agency took office, to comment and make these numbers transparent to the Presidency, because that is what we found in order to prepare Ancap's strategic management plan,” Cardona said.

“There was no management in the portland [cement] business in the last five years”, and that it is necessary to analyze the market and the viability of the three companies in the country dedicated to this raw material (Ancap and two private companies), which are working at 50% of their capacity, she also explained.

The government is awaiting a report from the Energy and Water Services Regulatory Unit (Ursea) to set fuel prices, with transparency and strategic planning underscored as key to stabilizing Ancap’s finances.

Other inherited economic challenges, such as the Neptuno Project and debts in various sectors, were also mentioned, signaling broader fiscal concerns.