Regulator vetos PGNiG request to increase gas prices

The company argued that the unit price of gas from imported sources increased by 58% while the price of gas to retail customers increased by only 32% over the same period. PGNiG complains that the president of the URE imposed a US dollar exchange rate of zl.3.07 and claims that it is currently impossible to purchase dollars at such a price. "The present tariff will not compensate for the price increase of imported gas since there was an independent and unforeseeable growth of the price only due to the increase of the US dollar exchange rate by 5%," stated Cyryl Fedorowicz, the head of PGNiG's tariff department. The representatives of PGNiG claim that the company sells gas below its costs. "We are a listed company and cannot operate as a non-profit organization," declared Fedorowicz, adding, "We are analyzing the possibility to appeal against the URE decision to the anti-monopoly court." (Puls Biznesu, p. 8) E.B.