Colombia Utility Bonds Fall Toward Record as Dam Gets Delayed

  • Empresas Publicas de Medellin notes fall for 16th straight day
  • First unit was set to start in July; now pushed to August

Water flows down the Hidroituango hydroelectric dam wall in these aerial photographs taken above Ituango, Colombia, on Saturday, June 8, 2019.

Photographer: Nicolo Filippo Rosso/Bloomberg
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Bonds from the electric utility in Medellin, Colombia, have tumbled toward a record low after officials pushed back the start date for a massive new dam that will eventually supply almost a fifth of the country’s power needs.

The first unit of Empresas Publicas de Medellin’s Hidroituango dam, which has been under construction for more than a decade, won’t be operational until August, Mayor Daniel Quintero said in a radio interview Wednesday. Officials had been targeting a July 26 start date.