Hidroelectrica investigated by the Competition Council

The Competition Council and the European Committee analyze the possibility that the energy tariffs, of which beneficiated many companies, inclusively those outside the market, which are the intermediates, are actually secret state helps.

The Competition Council has started an investigation on the energy market.

According to the Radio România Actualităţi reporter, Adrian Cristea, there are concerned the contracts signed by Hidroelectrica through which it would have given energy to some private firms at preferential prices.

It is for the first time when this subject appears in discussion.

At a thematic conference organized Wednesday by Mediafax, the president of the Competition Council, Bogdan Chiriţoiu, has announced that the European Committee also analyzes this kind of agreements.

Concretely, the European executive analyzes the possibility in which the energy tariffs, that certain companies beneficiated from, inclusively those outside the market, which are the intermediates, are actually secret state helps.

So, the contracts with Hidroelectrica are now under the magnifier.

Anyway –has specified Bogdan Chiriţoiu –the Competition Council collaborates with the European authorities.

“The investigation initiated by us starts from the data that we collected from the so-called useful investigation, so to speak from the study that we make on the electricity market.”
“From this analyze started with a purpose have resulted data which put us in doubts regarding the contracts legality.”

“The data related to energy volume which is available on the market, if it does not block so much energy, an amount so large over a very long period of time so that these contracts remain insufficient quantities on the market to ensure its liquidity”, has declared Bogdan Chirţoiu.
The European Committee is in the analyzing process of the situation on the autochthon energy market.

The actual investigation belongs to National Council.

This kind of investigations last for a long time.

“If at the end they will discover that it is about anticompetitive practices, the contracts in progress will be ceased, and the intermediate companies will give back the differences that normally belong to Romanian state.”

“We will speak after that about very serious fines”, has declared Bogdan Chiriţoiu.

The government tries to renegotiate the contracts

On March 20, the economy minister Lucian Bode has declared for Mediafax that the government will cease “so that the state cannot lose” the bilateral contracts through which Hidroelectrica sells energy if the beneficiaries of the commercial agreements will not accept the prices increase, the decrease of duration and of quantities.

The representatives of the International Monetary Fund (FMI) have requested the renegotiation of these contracts and the annulment, within law limits, of the agreements which cannot be renegotiated.

The authorities started at the end of last year to renegotiate the contracts, asking the beneficiaries to accept the energy quantities decrease and also of the duration for every agreement, as well as the prices increase at which Hidroelectrica sells the energy.
The discussions should have been ended by the end of March.

The beneficiaries of direct contracts were in 2010 the companies Alro Slatina, Luxten Lightining, Energy Holding, Europec, Electromagnetica, Electrocarbon, ArcelorMittal Galaţi, Alpiq Romindustries, Alpiq Romenergie, EFT România, Electrica, Salrom, CHN Petroşani and CLMB Pationar Braşov.

In 2011, the companies Salrom, CNH and CLMB Patinoar Braşov have accepted the agreement ceasing and Luxten has given up the agreement with Hidroelectrica.

The bilateral contracts of selling the energy were signed by Hidroelectrica between 2001 and 2003 and these expire in 2014, 2015 or 2018.

Translated by Alexandra-Diana Mircea
MTTLC, Bucharest University