Sev.en Energy becomes new owner of Pocerady coal-fired plant

Prague, Jan 3 (CTK) - The Sev.en Energy group of financier Pavel Tykac took over brown coal-fired power plant Pocerady from semi-state power utility CEZ as of December 31, 2020, both companies have told CTK.

Sev.en became the new owner of Pocerady three years earlier than originally planned.

The originally agreed price of Kc2bn for the sale planned for 2024 was raised to Kc2.5bn.

The companies said in October last year they had agreed to bring the sale forward with regard to the EU's new emission limits.

CEZ did not exercise its option to remain the plant owner at the end of 2019.

With installed capacity of 5x200 MW, Pocerady ranks among the biggest coal-fired power plants in the country.

Environmentalists oppose the change of Pocerady's owner, arguing that Tykac's company will operate Pocerady longer than CEZ would.

Sev.en Energy said in March last year it wanted to modernise Pocerady so that it could continue operating after 2028, when the EU's stricter rules come into force.

"The modernisation will start immediately after the plant's takeover. We are now preparing the required documentation and selecting suppliers for individual parts of the greening process. The goal is to renovate the plant so that it meets the strict European legislation in the future," Sev.en Energy spokeswoman Gabriela Sarickova Benesova told CTK earlier this week.

Sev.en want to put investments worth billions of crowns mainly in emission and dust reduction.

According to Benesova, the power plant will meet an overwhelming majority of requirements stemming from the new EU directive after the renovations.

"Mercury emissions constitute an exception, as their further lowering would require inadequately big investment. The European directive is aware of such situation and enables power plants to get a temporary exception," Benesova said.

The Arnika environmental NGO said last October Pocerady had been the second worst mercury polluter in Czechia in 2019. The plant also ranks among the biggest Czech sources of greenhouse gases, the NGO said.

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