PJSC Centrenergo in January-March 2015 saw a loss of UAH 400 million, Acting Commercial Director Serhiy Lukyanov has said at an energy forum of the Ukrainian Energy Assembly in Kyiv.

According to him, this financial result is due to Energomarket's incomplete payments for the energy sold by the company (70%) and its low tariffs

Lukyanov noted that for the successful preparation for the upcoming heating season of 2015/2016 the state regulator and the government should make decisions, which would allow energy generating companies to accumulate coal reserves in power plants' warehouses.

"This year, if this financial situation, tariffs and Energomarket's incomplete payments remain, if the government in the near future does not pay attention to generating companies, there won't be preparations for winter," he said.

"To prepare three thermal power plants for winter, Centrenergo needs to accumulate 400,000 tonnes of coal at each of them, i.e. the total figure is 1.2 million tonnes. Given the minimum price of coal, it would cost the company UAH 1.5 billion," he said, noting that currently the company's working capital is UAH 200-250 million.

He also said Centrenergo in the near future does not intend to buy imported coal due to its high price.