(ATR) A new round of talks over unpaid Maracanã utilities debts are set for tomorrow.
A spokesperson for Light, the Rio-based utilities provider for the stadium, confirmed to Around the Rings talks will resume between the company and Odebrecht. Odebrecht is the majority shareholder in the consortium, Maracanã S.A., which has the concession contract on the stadium. The stadium’s power has been off since Jan. 26.
Maracanã S.A. has been embroiled in a conflict with Rio 2016 over operation of the stadium. The consortium alleged that Rio 2016 left the stadium in need of repairs after the Olympics and Paralympics and refused to reassume control. Eventually, a judge ordered Maracanã S.A. to take over on Jan. 12 or face a daily fine.
Without an operator the Maracanã quickly fell into disrepair while in an abandoned state. The stadium was looted and the iconic pitch dried out without irrigation. The Football Federation of Rio de Janeiro (FFERJ) appealed to all parties to solve the situation before the semifinals of the first stage of the 2017 Rio State Football Championships. Traditionally, the Maracanã is used for "classico" matches between Rio’s big four football clubs, as well as the final stages of the state championship. The state federation has already sought to use alternate venues for the 2017 first stage semifinals.
The total debt Odebrecht owes on the stadium according to Light is $410,000 (R$1.3 million) for the months of November and December. Last month Odebrecht told ATR it planned to pay $310,000 towards the utilities debt, but revised its position to reassess the debts given that the consortium was not running the stadium in November and December.
A spokesperson from Odebrecht declined to comment about the upcoming talks.
The Maracanã is just one example of the flailing legacy of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. After the Games ended, the culmination of the precarious economic situation in Rio de Janeiro state has left most 2016 Olympic venues without operators. Like the Maracanã, the Deodoro Olympic Park remains closed to the public, and city hall tells ATR it is "working to reopen to the public as soon as possible".
The Barra Olympic Park is being run by the city and the sports ministry, after no private company could afford the 25-year lease required. Temporary structures still have not been dismantled, and only one official ticketed event has been held in the park, a beach volleyball tournament in the tennis arena.
IOC Vice President John Coates says the abandoned venues six months out from the 2016 Games are "not a good look," for the IOC.
"There’s no doubt about that," he told ATR.
"We wanted the venues to be used, to be a legacy for those [permanent arenas] that were to stay."
Homepage photo: Getty Images
Written by Aaron Bauer
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