15 December, Minsk /Olga Belyavskaya - BELTA/. The Belarusian government plans to toughen penalties for enterprises failing to meet energy consumption targets. This was stated today by Belarusian Prime Minister Mikhail Myasnikovich at a permanent seminar for senior officials of republican and local government bodies on the topic "Import Substitution as a Key Factor in Achieving Balanced Development of the Republic of Belarus Economy", as reported by a BELTA correspondent. According to Mikhail Myasnikovich, the government is particularly concerned about the stance of several managers who systematically fail to meet the assigned targets for saving fuel and energy resources. The five-year targets for energy efficiency have been missed by "Bellegprom", "Bellesbumprom", and "Belneftekhim". Among the regions lagging most in energy efficiency is Vitebsk region. "It must be stated that the pressure from the top is being transmitted weakly," said the Prime Minister. In this regard, he demanded that the Department for Energy Efficiency adopt a stricter stance towards enterprises. "It is necessary to introduce stringent, draconian targets for reducing energy intensity everywhere, without the possibility of waiving sanctions for their non-compliance," stated Mikhail Myasnikovich. "In order not to plunge state-owned enterprises into debt and fines, penalties should be levied on those directly responsible for this issue." -0-

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