CHILE MEDIA REPORT -- JUNE 9

UNCLAS SANTIAGO 000543 SIPDIS STATE FOR R/MR, I/PP, WHA/BSC, WHA/PDA, INR/IAA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KMDR KPAO PGOV ECON PREL SNAR EFIN CI SUBJECT: CHILE MEDIA REPORT -- JUNE 9 Leading Stories -------------- ¶1. President Hugo Chavez postponed an official visit to Chile in June. He rescheduled the event for July, coinciding with the next UNASUR summit. Dailies also report that Chile has 890 cases of AH1N1, 10 are considered to be in serious condition. Venezuela -------------- ¶2. President Hugo Chavez postponed his visit to Chile. Chavez would have been in Santiago in June, but is now expected to come for the UNASUR meeting in July. The postponement occurs amid growing discontent among Chilean companies that have invested in Venezuela. The Venezuelan government owes 52 Chilean companies a total of US$80 million and last week ordered Venceramica to close. Some of these companies have started to talk about "harassment." The Foreign Ministry has not issued a statement, but regards the issue as "highly sensitive" (La Tercera, conservative, independent, circ. 101,000, 6/9). Nuclear Energy -------------- ¶3. The Electric Nuclear Corporation (ENC),the branch of Russian Intermash in Chile, concluded its report on the requirements to develop nuclear energy in Chile and submitted it to the National Energy Commission (CNE). The report is one of three commissioned by the Energy Commission in 2008. Anatole Gubin, head of ENC, outlined some of the conclusions: Chile must have a autonomous regulatory entity formed by experts prior to the reactor's construction and a special unit to check that the plants operate at international standards. ¶4. The report noted that waste reservoirs become necessary 10-12 years after the operations start, and that uranium can now be recycled. It states that uranium reserves are expected to last 100 years. The document also mentioned torio, an alternative fuel that produces less wastes, is less radioactive, and for which there are reserves for 600 years. A nuclear reactor today can withstand a level 9 earthquake, noted the document, which recommends starting to train specialized personnel now. The initial cost to build a reactor ranges from US$2.5 to 3 billion (La Tercera, 6/9). Digital Television -------------- ¶5. All television stations in the United States will start airing with digital technology on Friday. In Chile, the change is not expected to take place for another eight years. The government, however, has not yet chosen between the U.S., Japanese, or European standard (El Mercurio, 6/9). Cultural -------------- ¶6. Advertisement announcing the seminar, "Chile-U.S. Comparative Cultural Policies 2009: Cultural Networks -- Models, Implementation, Challenges," co-sponsored by PA Santiago, the Catholic University, and the Ohio Arts Council (La Tercera, conservative, independent, circ. 101,000, 6/9). SIMONS