E.ON Gaz Romania Posts RON38M Loss In 1Q, On Energy Watchdog Price Hike Deferring

"Additionally to the losses reported in 2008 and unrecovered until now, due to the fact the ANRE postponed its decision to enforce the new supply tariffs as of January 1, 2009, E.ON Gaz Romania registered in the first quarter of the year RON38 million worth of losses from the regulated tariff," the company said.

Romania’s Energy Watchdog ANRE decided to keep the natural gas tariff for household users unchanged in the second quarter of the year.

Late 2008, ANRE representatives said the gas tariffs may be kept until the third quarter of 2009, when they might even fall, due to the oil price cut and lower imported gas prices.

The price of natural gas and electricity for household users stayed the same in the first quarter of the year as well, while electricity price for industrial users rose 1.5% on January 1, owing to the repair works at certain hydroelectric plants and the volatility of the forecasts on electricity consumption for 2009, in the light of the international financial crisis.

In 2008, natural gas price for households rose twice, by 8.5% as of February and by 12.5% as of July, respectively.

"In order to enable the suppliers to recover part of the natural gas acquisition costs uncovered in 2008, ANRE adjusted the final price structure, which does not affect the end-consumer," the statement also read.

E.On Gaz Romania said the last adjustment of the final price in July 2008 was not enough to entirely cover the costs registered by E.ON Gaz Romania for the natural gas acquisition. Thus, at the end of 2008, the company paid RON97 million from not covering the natural gas acquisition costs.

Thus, E.ON Gaz Romania filed ANRE all the grounding documents, saying it is absolutely necessary the natural gas price structure mirrors the uncovered costs for natural gas acquisition in 2008 as well as the company’s current gas acquisitions.

E.ON Gaz Romania said it could recover only part of 2008’s acquisition costs for natural gas, on ANRE taking into account in its calculation for the final price structure only the company’s uncovered costs worth RON66 million.