PGE submits its proposals to clear the takeover of EDF assets

According to Rzeczpospolita daily, PGE has submitted proposals to antitrust watchdog UOKiK which would allow it to takeover the Polish assets of EDF. The proposal includes: selling the coal-fired plant in Rybnik, letting someone else manage it, or increasing the mandatory 15 percent threshold of energy sold through the POLPX power exchange. “We are in contact with PGE. I hope we will be able to find a solution which would eliminate the competition restrictions resulting from this concentration,” said UOKiK President Marek Niechiał. According to the daily, the scenario which assumes increasing the sale of energy they produce through the exchange is a base scenario. PGE proposal assumes 20-23 percent of the energy it produces is sold on the POLPX, but it would certainly not reach 30 percent, which is the minimum threshold mentioned by some market participants and the Energy Regulatory Office. Back in May, PGE agreed to buy Polish assets of French EDF for PLN 4.5 billion. The value of the transaction includes PLN 2.45 billion in equity value and PLN 2.06 billion in debt and is expected to be finalized the deal by January 2, 2018. After the transaction it’s power generation capacity would rise to 45 percent from the current 36 percent. The deal, which is supported by Poland’s energy ministry, was unexpectedly questioned in September by UOKiK, which said that the transaction could undermine competition in the energy market.