CEZ Distribuce to invest Kc18.7bn in distribution networks next year

Prague, Dec 8 (CTK) - CEZ Distribuce, the largest Czech electricity distributor, will invest Kc18.65bn in its networks next year, down from Kc19.2bn this year, company spokeswoman Sona Holingerova told CTK today.

The money will go towards restoring and developing distribution, and in particular towards connecting new sources, including batteries, she said.

Most of the money this year went into connecting new renewable sources to the grid, the company said. By the end of November this year, CEZ Distribuce had connected 15,376 photovoltaic power plants with an installed capacity of 427 MW on its territory. The figures confirm the trend of a gradually weakening market, with the number of installations down by more than 40 percent year-on-year. However, the share of larger installations is growing.

A new feature this year is the connection of electricity storage systems.

"In September, we started accepting applications for the connection of battery storage facilities, expecting increased interest, which was confirmed. Within 12 days, we received over 1,000 applications for a reserved capacity totalling 7.5 gigawatts. At the end of November, we have already registered applications with a total battery capacity of 258 gigawatt hours. Another significant part of the investment went into digitisation of our distribution network," said company CEO Martin Zmelik.

The overwhelming majority of requests for the connection of battery storage systems come from companies, over 61 percent of cases at the high voltage level, and another 36 percent at the very high voltage level.

Dozens of projects were aimed at reinforcing and upgrading the networks, said the company.

Other distributors also made investments in their networks worth billions of crowns this year. The second largest electricity distributor in the Czech Republic is EG.D, which provides distribution in the South Bohemia and South Moravia regions, as well as in Vysocina and partly in the Zlin and Olomouc regions. This year the company plans to spend Kc8.9bn on the development of its network, the same as last year.

The Prague-based distributor Prazska energetika has spent over Kc2.5bn on its network development and renewal this year.

According to the operators, investments in the electricity systems will have to be increased in the coming years. They foresee the need for investments of up to Kc40bn per year in the future due to the growing demands on network development and management.

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