The chairman of Enel of Italy, Chicco Testa, said that the Czech Cabinet may have to wait until after the Czech general election in June to privatize CEZ.
Deputy Finance Minister Tomas Potmesil said that the Cabinet now negotiates with three companies interested in CEZ’s privatization. Though unconfirmed, the Czech Press Agency says that International Power and RWE should be among the three, and Electricite de France is likely the third.
We believe that direct privatization before the elections is unlikely (mostly due to transparency related concerns and strict privatization conditions), and no reaction to the news is expected from the stock.
Jiri Soustruznik