The Czech government’s commitment
The Czech government is currently working on a targeted solution to alleviate the impact of rising energy prices on domestic businesses operating in energy-intensive sectors. By mid-December, the government is committed to presenting a response to the growing concerns of entrepreneurs and industry about this issue.
Ministers Zbyněk Stanjura, responsible for Finance, and Jozef Síkela, responsible for Industry and Trade, agreed on this initiative following discussions with industry representatives. At the moment, the Ministry has not yet provided specific details on what form the support for entrepreneurs will take. In the coming year, a significant increase in regulated energy prices is expected, particularly impacting large industrial enterprises.
Planned increases
Last week, the Energy Regulatory Office (ERÚ) announced its decision regarding the regulated component of energy prices for next year. According to the ERÚ, an increase of 105.5 percent is expected for high-voltage electricity and 190.9 percent for extra-high voltage, mainly used by large companies. For households and small businesses operating in low-voltage, an annual growth of 66.7 percent is expected. As for gas, regulated prices for wholesale customers will increase by 41.8 percent and for domestic customers by nearly 39 percent.
Finance Minister Stanjura said they are aware of possible increases in energy expenses for energy-intensive businesses. In response, the government decided to engage representatives of the Chamber of Commerce and the Union of Industry and Transportation to find a solution within about two weeks. Industry and Trade Minister Síkela also intervened, stressing that if an agreement is reached with the unions, the measure adopted will allow targeted intervention in electricity prices without requiring notifications to the European Commission. This promise on the part of the government has received positive appreciation from industry representatives and entrepreneurs, who stress the importance of avoiding excessive monetary outflows in order to preserve the competitiveness of Czech companies.
Alcune dichiarazioni
The president of the Union of Industry and Transport, Jan Rafaj, criticized the ERÚ’s current pricing decision, calling it unacceptable for energy-intensive companies. While, Zdeněk Zajíček, the president of the Chamber of Commerce of the Czech Republic, appreciated the slight reduction of the planned increase in the regulated component compared to the initial proposal by the ERÚ. However, he stressed that this will not be enough to support companies if they reflect the increase in energy costs in the prices of their products, as this could weaken their competitiveness.
Zajíček highlighted the importance of considering the specific situation in the Czech Republic, with a developed industrial base and higher energy demand than the EU average. Any increase in energy prices affects Czech companies more significantly than in other nations. As a result of the negotiations, the Ministry announced an agreement for regular meetings next year, during which systemic solutions will be discussed to avoid future unpredictable increases in the regulated energy component.
Source : https://www.e15.cz/
Image source: http://www.engas.it/
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