PGNiG will have to wait with the implementation of new tariffs longer than till October 1st, the date the company had planned before. The CEO of energy authorities URE is going to ask the company for additional data to its application submitted in August.
“This is going to be the third request already. We won’t reveal what it is about as long as the proceeding is going on”, Agnieszka Glosniewska, URE spokeswoman said.
The regulator had planned to publish its decision on September 16th. The new prices would be 17.4 percent higher on the average.
PGNiG explains that gas imports costs are growing following skyrocketing oil prices. So far, PGNiG has sold both Polish and imported gas. In August, it said it is cutting inland production. This year, it will fall from 4.6bn cubic meters to 4.2bn and in 2009 from 5bn to 4.6bn. PGNiG explains that exploration is very difficult. Interestingly, during the Economic Forum in Krynica, Michal Szubski, PGNiG CEO, assured that the company is very much oriented to look for and to explore gas in Poland.
In the first half of this year, PGNiG had PLN 3.9bn (EUR 1.2bn) of sales against PLN 3.3bn a year earlier. Operating income fell to PLN 294, from PLN 412m a year earlier while net income dropped from PLN 327m to PLN 280m.
(PLN 1 = EUR 0.298)