There are several news items relevant for CEZ today, though we do not expect them to have much affect on the stock.
The EU has for the first time criticized Temelin power plant’s safety in a document about nuclear-safety issues in Eastern Europe. Czech officials and a CEZ spokesman said that the issues cited in the EU paper were identified more than one year ago and that they had been since addressed.
A National Property Fund (NPF) spokeswoman said that the Czech Anti-monopoly Office has not canceled the CEZ privatization advisory tender, as wanted by the government, but has instead ordered the NPF to reevaluate the original bids and to justify the winner selection. It is not yet clear whether this vague directive will lead to a more transparent tender process that will not be followed by objections from participants. Resuming the privatization process would be good news, but the ruling is unlikely to move the stock until there is prospect of tangible and credible progress in the advisory tender.
CEZ and some of its coal suppliers have demanded a one-year delay in Czech electricity-market liberalization. CEZ argues that the domestic market should not be open to foreign competition unless the foreign markets are open for CEZ as well — a clear reaction to E.ON’s decision to terminate supply contracts with CEZ.
Separately, there are estimates that electricity infrastructure investment, needed due to the planned market liberalization, will amount to hundreds of million Czech crowns. These costs are to be borne by all market participants, including CEZ.
(Ondřej Daťka)