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UTILITY WEEK | 2ND - 8TH DECEMBER 2016 | 31 Community Adios, Castro The year is stumbling to a close much as it started, with the death of famous people. Last week it was the turn of Fidel Castro, the celebrated 1960s revolutionary who made it to the grand old age of 90, a feat few of his enemies achieved. While he didn't make it onto as many T-shirts as his compatriot Che Guevara, he didn't get executed by a CIA-backed Bolivian militia either. So, swings and roundabouts, then. Fidel was a bit of a Marmite dictator. On the one hand, he had opponents gruesomely tortured and shot, but on the other he was mates with Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, the presidents of Russia and China respectively, so he must have been doing something right, right? Like most everything else in Cuba, utility services are a mixed bag. The country is rated second-best in South America for citizens' access to adequate sanitation, but it is estimated that only 4 per cent of the sewage collected has any sort of treatment at all. The rest is just pumped out to sea. According to a 2006 report prepared for the US president, the country has only five wastewater treatment plants and all of them are effectively "inoperative". Cuba is hoping against hope that the end of political isolation signalled by Obama will mean the start of desperately needed inward investment. But of course Obama's heading for the exit and The Donald may have his own ideas… From China with love Disconnector was intrigued to learn that the government of Ukraine has signed up two Chinese companies, GCL System Integration Technology and state-owned CCEC, to build a 1GW solar power plant in the exclusion zone set up around Chernobyl. Aer the nuclear plant's horrific meltdown in 1986, Soviet officials set up a restricted area around the site covering 2,600 sq km in Ukraine's Kiev and Zhytomyr regions. Much of the zone is still radioactive and will remain so for years to come, so utilising the space with a solar installation makes a lot of sense. The obvious caveat is that building the thing in the first place will be, erm, tricky. Disconnector can't help but feel that the Chinese will be particularly pleased to show off their technical know-how in a place synonymous with Soviet incompetence. Given that Ukraine and Russia are at war in all but name, the symbolism can hardly be lost on the Ukrainians either. Sticking point A more light-hearted tale from that part of the world comes courtesy of Muhibija Buljubasic, from Srebenik in Bosnia Herzegovina, who claims to be a real-life version of Magneto, the X-men's archenemy, who is able to stick metal objects to his body using his special "magnetic" power. According to Buljubasic, he discovered his super-power eight years ago aer watching a woman putting tablespoons on her body on TV. Since then he has been pictured with a range of objects stuck to his body, including teaspoons, TV remotes and an iron. Given that he's 58 years old, and works in a car body repair shop, Disconnector is surprised he didn't cotton on to the fact that his body was a magnet earlier, but that's by the by. Before any readers get too excited and fork out on an air ticket to explore the source of Buljubasic's power, Disconnector should say that he claims to be able to stick heavy glass objects to his body too – and even Magneto couldn't do that. Disconnector Editor, Utility Week, and content director, Utilities: Ellen Bennett, t: 01342 332084, e: ellenbennett@fav-house.com; Acting editor: Jane Gray, t: 01342 332087, e: janegray@ fav-house.com; Insights editor: Mathew Beech, t: 01342 332082, e: mathewbeech@fav-house. com; News editor: Lois Vallely, t: 01342 332080, e: loisvallely@fav-house.com; Networks correspondent: Lucinda Dann, t: 01342 332083, e: lucindadann@fav-house.com; Reporters: Saffron Johnson, t: 01342 332050, e: saffronjohnson@fav-house.com and Tom Grimwood, t: 01342 332061, e: tomgrimwood@fav-house.com; Business development manager: Richard Powell, t: 01342 332062, e: richardpowell@fav-house.com; Business development executive: Nigel Searle, t: 01342 332009, e: nigelsearle@fav-house.com; Publisher: Amanda Barnes, e: amandabarnes@ fav-house.com. General enquiries: 01342 332000; Membership enquiries: Peter Bissell, t: 01342 332057, e: peterbissell@fav-house.com. ISSN: 1356-5532. Registered as a newspaper at the Post Office. Printed by: Buxton Press, Palace Road, Buxton, Derbyshire SK17 6AE. Published by: Faversham House Ltd, Windsor Court, Wood Street, East Grinstead, West Sussex RH19 1UZ 3,580 Average circulation Jan–Dec 2015 Membership subscriptions: UK £637 per year. Overseas £749 per year. Contact Peter Bissell on: 01342 332057 Utility Week is a member of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (which regulates the UK's magazine and newspaper industry). We abide by the Editors' Code of Practice and are committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism. If you think that we have not met those standards and want to make a complaint please contact the editor, Ellen Bennett, at ellenbennett@fav-house.com. If we are unable to resolve your complaint, or if you would like more information about IPSO or the Editors' Code, contact IPSO on 0300 123 2220 or visit www.ipso.co.uk Shelter @Shelter For every use of the hashtag #TweetForShel- ter @BritishGas will donate £1 to Shelter – with the aim of raising £25,000. Tag your friends! Andy Zaltzman @ZaltzCricket Come on folks. Let's bankrupt British Gas. (I assume that's what this is about) #TweetForShelter #7billionpeopleintheworld #multiplehashtags paul massara @paulmassara It's good that more new entrants have come into the market but Ofgem need to ensure they are capitalised properly and consumers protected William Marchant @richonlyinname One of big risks is loss of confidence. Many small suppliers are stable. Some aren't. But the public has no way of knowing who is who. Cheryl Latham @Cheryl_Latham This has not happened because #GBEnergy is a small supplier. It's because it grew too quickly and charged too little for energy Dan Jarvis @DanJarvisMP 4million families live in cold, damp homes. Govt must do more to end fuel #poverty @ NEA_UKCharity #WarmHomesCampaign Jon Ferris @fractalgrid EU to require emissions limits for Capacity Markets. Didn't @EdwardJDavey say EU rules prevented him excluding diesel? Tom Burke @tom_burke_47 Local communities have power to reject wind- farm applications, but fracking applications pushed through by ministers ICIS NBP @ICISNBP UK #Carbon price support will remain frozen at the current rate of £18.00/tCO2e til 2020 - boosts CCGT profitability #gas #NBP Top Tweets