Legislation makes expropriation of energy monopolies impossible from the technical and legal standpoint, according to constitutional law expert Radoslav Procházka.
He made the comment in reference to a recent statement by Prime Minister Robert Fico, who threatened energy providers with nationalisation if they failed to maintain prices within the public's purchasing power.
"I do not know of a law that would determine expropriation of shares and give some specific authority the power to decide upon it," Procházka told the SITA newswire on August 18.
Procházka explained that expropriation in Slovakia is bound to the existence of a law and an authority that decides on the expropriation. In order to expropriate, it is necessary to prove public interest and provide compensation.
"But the compensation does not necessarily have to match the market value," he added. SITA
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
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