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Greece faces massive power cuts

03 July 2014 18:54 (UTC +04:00)

Workers of Greece’s Public Power Corporation (PPC) said they would go on strike on Thursday to protest a privatization program planned by the government.

Athens plans to privatize the PPC as part of a government drive to liberalize Greece’s energy market.

“PPC must remain under public control to ensure there is cheap electricity for consumers,” A PPC union group said in a statement.

The strike would mean many homes without electricity at the height of the Greek summer.

On June 6, members of civil servant unions in Greece staged a protest rally in the capital, Athens, in support of hundreds of staff sacked from the Finance Ministry.

Greece’s economy has been relying on international bailout funds worth 240 billion euros (USD 322 billion) and on short-term bonds. In exchange, the government has implemented harsh austerity measures.

Since 2010, the national health, education and local government budgets have been cut down by some 40 percent and so have wages and pensions.

The country’s unemployment rate currently stands at a record level of nearly 28 percent.

Greece, which has been in recession since 2008, is at the epicenter of the debt crisis in the eurozone.