Cap and trade: ČEZ among "fattest cats" of Europe

Pavel Baroch, Radim Klekner

5. 5. 2010 18:14

Taxpayer's money helped the Czech energy giant to make large profits from emission allowances sales

Prague - Czech state-owned energy-giant ČEZ is among the ten European companies who make largest profit from selling emission allowances.

This is the result of the newest study called Carbon Fat Cats published by a British NGO Sandbag.

In Central and Eastern Europe, ČEZ is the largest cap-and-trade player.

Sandbag expresses its astonishment over the fact that the government of PM Mirek Topolánek (2006-2009) granted ČEZ so many allowances without obliging it to significantly reduce its emissions.

Sandbag explains that the government protected ČEZ from a shortage of emission allowances and thus from having to reduce its emissions.

On the contrary, other large energy companies such as RWE, E.ON or Vattenfall had to reduce their emissions or buy carbon credits (allowances) that equal more than 100 mil tons of carbon dioxide.

575 mil. CZE in profit

The analysis shows that in 2008 ČEZ achieved a profit of 575 million CZK (23 mil EUR) from the emissions trading. It is likely that ČEZ will have abundance of allowances even in the years to come, so the organization estimates that by 2012 it will have profited almost 3 billion CZK from the cap and trade.

In addition, Sandbag describes a situation from 2009, when the parliament enabled ČEZ to obtain some of its allowances for free, even though the company would be normally obliged to buy them.

Green Party leader in Ústí nad Labem region and former Environment Minister Martin Bursík estimates that in 2013-2020, almost 70 billion CZK (2.8 billion EUR) of taxpayers' money will flow into the pockets of ČEZ and other energy companies.

Carbon fat cats or carbon skinny cats?

However, ČEZ itself provides another way of how to look at the study. „It is a Top 10 of the largest (emission) reducers. Those who managed to save the most allowances, eventually profited the most," said ČEZ spokesman Ladislav Kříž, adding that in comparison with 2007 the company reduced 12 percent of its emissions and want to keep reducing them.

ČEZ wants to reduce its emission rate from 0.55 ton carbon dioxide per megawatt-hour to 0.47 ton, said Kříž.

Most of large European energy companies have lower emission rate, so ČEZ needs to decrease its own in order to retain its competitiveness. Its disadvantage is that most of the energy it produces comes from coal plants.

The list of „carbon fat cats" is headed by ArcelorMittal, whose facilities are located all over Europe, including in Ostrava, the Czech Republic. Czech ČEZ and Slovakian Slovenske elektrarne are the only energy companies in the 10 ten list.