Boss, hold up, 'cause I've got news that made me spill my coffee all over Tyson's couch! I mean, seriously now: Hidroelectrica, our energy giant, just pulled a move that'll leave you speechless. On Friday, the shareholders gathered at the General Meeting and, with 94.92% of the votes, suspended Silviu Răzvan Avram, the Chairman of the Supervisory Board. Why? Well, because the guy is indicted for bribery, bro! The case is pending at the Bucharest Court of Appeal, case number 6631/2/2025, if you wanna look it up. And it's no small-time hustle - we're talking Article 289 of the New Criminal Code, that's straight-up bribery, cold-blooded. That's how it goes, cuz: if you get caught with your hand in the cookie jar, they take away your toys. The suspension lasts until a final conviction or until the criminal trial ends. Meaning, if he's innocent, he comes back, but if not... say goodbye to your position.
Now, the part that gets me talking: what do I, a simple man with a 2008 BMW, do when I hear about billions? 'Cause we're not talking pocket change. In the same meeting, the shareholders approved the 2026 budget and, get this, released additional dividends of one billion lei! That's 2.223197 lei per share, from retained earnings. And interim CEO Bogdan Badea said the budget includes investments of 1.5 billion lei. Bro, I can't wait for that money to reach the shareholders - let's see if it trickles down to us, the pensioners or Lidl employees like Mioara, or stays with the big shots. And the company ended 2025 with a net profit of 3.3 billion lei, even with a tough hydrological year. Meaning, rain or shine, they still rake it in. Good for them, but I'd kinda like to be a shareholder too, no joke.
But it's not all milk and honey. Badea, who's interim, recently withdrew from the race for the company's top job, citing political pressure. And interim Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan - that guy from Cluj who's cleaning house across the country - harshly criticized the company for lack of investments and for the big employee bonuses. He made the approval of the 2026 budget conditional on including in the management contracts an obligation to invest in storage: 1,500 MWh. Meaning, he wants you to put money into batteries, not fat salaries. And on May 9, Hidroelectrica publicly warned about possible political interference, after the Ministry of Energy announced its intention to suspend Avram before officially communicating with the company. That's how it goes, bro: some pull one way, others another, and we're left staring like a cat at a calendar.
Man, I think it's good that they took action, but let's be real: a thousand million in dividends and only 1.5 in investments? That's not how it works, bro. 'Cause this winter I'm facing high electricity bills, and if they don't invest in storage, we're the ones paying. And since we're talking about interference, it reminds me of that saying: "Back in Ceaușescu's day it wasn't like this, but at least corruption wasn't out in the open." Well, now it's out in the open and all legal. Alright, I'm off to explain to Mioara why our bread money isn't enough anymore - she keeps saying I'm dreaming about dividends, not reality.
