Energoatom ready to fully provide electricity to 30% of biggest consumers, households
State-run National Nuclear Energy Generating Company Energoatom, which was obliged by the government to sell 90% of generated electricity outside the competitive market with the launch of a new model of the electricity market on July 1, is ready to increase supplies to the biggest industrial consumers complaining about power rates hikes, and, as before, to provide low-priced electricity to households, Energoatom President Yuriy Nedashkovsky has said.
"We had enough [capacities] to cover them all if this had been done the right way," he told Interfax-Ukraine on the sidelines of a round table on the first results of the new electricity market, which was held at a parliamentary committee in Kyiv on July 16.
Nedashkovsky explained that Energoatom produces more than 80 billion kWh of electricity per year, while households consume 36 billion kWh, and the 30 largest industrial consumers buy 45 billion kWh.
Speaking at the round table, a number of its participants expressed the opinion that allowing only 10% of Energoatom's output to the competitive market was one of key causes behind a 20-25% increase in electricity prices for the largest industrial consumers. Olha Buslavets, Director General of the Energy Markets Directorate of the Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry, said at the round table that after analyzing the first results of the new market model, the ministry proposes reducing the share of electricity that Energoatom sells at special prices and special obligations from the current 90%. According to her, this will allow large consumers to have access to it and minimize possible price speculation.
Nedashkovsky, in his speech at the round table, noted that the company's overpriced sales of electricity at special prices amid an increase in prices in a competitive market create conditions for its resale by unfair market participants.
President of the Ukrmetprom Association Oleksandr Kalenkov said that in July this year, the electricity sold by Energoatom to consumers at special prices exceeded by 60% the sales to the consumers in July last year.
Nedashkovsky said that if Energoatom had entered competitive auctions, the price of electricity "would have been at least 30% lower."
An agreement was reached at the round table to hold a working group meeting on July 18 jointly with the National Commission for Energy, Housing and Utilities Services Regulation (NCER) and the Energy and Coal Industry Ministry to discuss possible solutions to the problem faced by large electricity consumers.