According to Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS), the restructuring of ČEZ could occur within two years. He told the News on Thursday before the European Council meeting in Brussels. However, he did not specify whether the actual split of the company would take place. The aim, he said, is to make the country’s energy security.
“The whole process could take place in about two years. This is a realistic scenario of some steps we should start taking shortly,” he said.
He was referring to Thursday’s address to the nation in which he said the government wanted to control the entire network of critical domestic power plants, i.e., its electricity generation, soon.
ČEZ owns eight of the country’s ten largest power plants. The state now owns a 70 percent stake in ČEZ, with minority shareholders holding the rest.
And back in May, Fiala told the media that the government was considering restructuring ČEZ. He identified a break-up of the company as a possible way forward. Even now, however, he did not want to specify the details.
“I will not go into details now. Those debates are ahead of us, but I declared the strategic intention of the Czech government yesterday,” he said in response to a question about whether this would mean a de facto break-up of ČEZ.
The road to energy self-sufficiency
Fiala also said that he considers it most important to secure alternative energy sources as part of CT’s energy self-sufficiency.
“The crises we are facing now show that it is important for the Czech Republic to have some influence on critical and energy infrastructure,” the Czech government chief noted.
“One of the ways is undoubtedly to restructure ČEZ so that the state can manage part of the critical infrastructure through ČEZ. So the reconstruction of ČEZ could be directed towards that, but it is a question of further debates,” Fiala further stressed.