The general meeting of Slovak gas utility SPP on Monday, October 29, rejected a proposal of the company's board to raise gas prices for households in 2013, the TASR newswire learned from Economy Ministry spokesman Stanislav Jurikovič. The board, in which foreign stakeholders (Germany's E.ON Ruhrgas and France's GDF Suez) have majority representation, suggested that the rates be upped by an average of over 18 percent, or alternatively by as much as 25 percent.
"The state's representatives were against the pricing proposals as submitted by the board," said Jurikovič after SPP's general meeting. SPP was supposed to submit its pricing proposals to the country's energy regulator ÚRSO by the end of October. "As the board and general meeting won't get to meet (by October 31), ÚRSO on its own initiative will decide on the new gas prices for households," said Jurikovič as quoted by TASR.
The decision from SPP's general meeting comes shortly after the government declined to discuss the transfer of the 49-percent stake in Slovak gas utility SPP owned by the French and German companies to Czech energy company Energetický a Prúmyslovy Holding (EPH). The move came after the two foreign stakeholders had failed to withdraw their proposal for a hike in gas prices for households next year. The National Property Fund (FNM) owns a 51-percent stake in SPP, while Slovak Gas Holding controls 49 percent of the shares and is owned by E.ON Ruhrgas and GDF Suez. The foreign shareholders, who reportedly are already in the black on their return on investment, have been holding talks on selling their shares with EPH for some time.
(Source: TASR)
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
