Rusal asked the government for electricity benefits

The demand of the company Oleg Deripaska and Viktor Vekselberg explained by US sanctions.
23.04.2018
Kommersant
Origin source
The largest consumer of electricity in Russia - the company "Rusal" of Oleg Deripaska after falling under US sanctions asks for preferences on the wholesale energy market. It may be about the refusal to pay on mandatory contracts for the supply of capacity, which cost the company 8 billion rubles. in year. The interlocutors of Kommersant believe that such a measure of support is a "dangerous precedent" that could disrupt the balance of interests in the market. According to analysts, the winnings of "Rusal" in any case will be small, besides the benefits of the company may not be needed.

"Rusal" asks for preferences on the wholesale energy market, Interfax reported on Friday with reference to its sources. This information was confirmed by the interlocutors of Kommersant. "Rusal" explains the need for such measures by imposing sanctions against the company and its main shareholders Oleg Deripaska and Viktor Vekselberg. "The change in consumption in the situation with the" Rusal "is possible. There are several options, we look, we believe, "Deputy Energy Minister Vyacheslav Kravchenko told Interfax.

For Rusal, several types of benefits are being discussed, Kommersant sources say, the most radical is the complete exemption of the company from payment under capacity supply contracts (DPM, guarantees return of investments to generating companies due to increased payments of consumers) for several years or transition to direct contracts are concluded with sales). Annually, "Rusal" pays about 8 billion rubles for the PDM. Another option is the release of Rusal from the premium paid by consumers in the European part of the Russian Federation and Siberia to reduce energy tariffs in the Far East. Also, perhaps, "Rusal" will be exempt from other quasi-market extra charges - fees for the green generation generation PDM or incinerators. These premiums were previously heavily criticized by all major consumers.

Rusal is the largest consumer of electricity in the Russian Federation. In 2016, the company purchased 62 billion kWh (6.1% of consumption in the Russian Federation, 30% in Siberia). En + Oleg Deripaska's En + holding, which owns not only 48.13% of RusAl, but also a large generating asset - Eurosibenergo (controls Irkutskenergo, Krasnoyarsk HPP and Avtozavodskaya CHPP), also fell under the sanctions. Directly to "Rusal" belong 50% in Boguchanskaya HPP (another 50% - at "RusHydro"). At the same time, owning own generation, the holding can not provide a discount to itself. Under the law, under bilateral contracts, the price can not differ from wholesale by more than 3.5%, in addition, payments for DPM apply to all consumers, whether on wholesale or bilateral contracts they are located, notes Vladimir Sklyar of VTB Capital. According to Natalia Porokhova of ACRA, if the payment for the DPM "Rusal" is transferred to all consumers, including the European part of the Russian Federation, then the price will increase by 0.3%.

According to a source from Kommersant, profile ministries are critical of the company's proposals, as this can seriously affect the "balance of interests in the energy market." "The question may arise about how to avoid price regulation and revision of the results of long-term competitive power take-off (conducted until 2021 "According to him, it would be better if the state helped Rusal to sell aluminum bypassing sanctions." Another source of Kommersant in the government believes that reducing payments " Rusal » possibly within the framework of smoothing out the peaks of payments for DPM, which is now being discussed in the context of a large-scale modernization program for TPPs (up to 3.5 trillion rubles in volume until 2035.) "For example, payments for DPM for Leningrad NPP-2 and Novovoronezh NPP -2 ", - another source of Kommersant assumes." The source of "Kommersant" in one of the agencies considers the granting of privileges for PDM for Rusal a mistake, since it is impossible to create a similar precedent for the largest consumers. "Other people will follow him. What then will remain of the market? "- he says.

But the government is still ready for a serious discussion of these measures, interlocutors of Kommersant say. The issue was raised at a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich, instructed to "work out the proposals of" Rusal ", a clear position of the departments did not sound on it," says a source familiar with Kommersant's results. In the Ministry of Energy, Ministry of Economy, "Rusal" declined to comment.

Vladimir Sklyar believes that Rusal's proposals are unlikely to bring down the demand for electricity: "There are not so many DPMs in Siberia, and saving Rusal, and therefore raising prices for other consumers, will not be the most significant." Reducing the power consumption of "Rusal" may have more serious consequences: thus, the fall in aluminum production by 30% reduces the price of the day ahead market in Siberia by 5-8%. Maxim Khudalov from ACRA believes that in reality such serious benefits to Rusal may not be needed if it is possible to organize the sale of aluminum bypassing sanctions, as well as taking into account the price increase in recent weeks.

Business

Previous Article
Next article