| Telasi Plans to Invest GEL 25 Million in Modernizing Electricity Network |
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21/04/2009 11:43 (213 Day 21:47 minutes ago) | |||||
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The FINANCIAL -- The FINANCIAL interviewed Yuri Pimenov, General Director of JSC Telasi, who promises that the company will keep the price for electricity stable over the next six years.
Telasi, energy distributing company owned by Russian energy holding Inter Rao UES, plans to invest an additional GEL 25 million for rehabilitating works of the electric power transmission network. The company does not plan to enlarge its market share in Georgia. The FINANCIAL interviewed Yuri Pimenov, General Director of JSC Telasi, who promises that the company will keep the price for electricity stable over the next six years.
Inter Rao UES (OJSC) is a Russian electricity trading and holding company. The present-day company, incorporated in 2008 as an open type corporation, is a successor to the eponymous company, Inter Rao UES (CJSC), a closed type corporation established in May 1997 by Rao UES with the purpose of consolidating energy generation and sales in foreign countries. As of July 2008, Inter Rao stock has is owned by state-owned Rosatom (60%) and Energoatom (40%), however, the company statute allows divestment of non-controlling shares to private investors.
Rosatom Nuclear Energy State Corporation (Rosatom) is a State Corporation in Russia, the regulatory body of the Russian nuclear complex. It is comparable in function to the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission. It is headquartered in MOSCOW .
Q. From which electric power stations is Telasi supplied with electricity?
A. From the years 2008-2009 Joint Stock Company (JSC) Telasi was buying electric energy from hydro-electric power stations of: Khrami 1, Khrami 2, Engury, Ortachala, Khadori, Vardnilhesi and Jinvali. Suppliers of hydro-electric power were: the first power unit of Mtkvari energy and the operator of the Georgian power industry. The total power of all power stations is 1,912 megawatts per hour. Telasi distributes electricity in Tbilisi and its surrounding settlements: Tskneti, Kiketi, Kojori, Tabakhmela, Okrokana, Cavkisi and so on.
In the Georgian power system, corporation Telasi is one of the largest companies. Currently the majority holding of electro distributing company is occupied by the Russian energy holding Inter Rao UES, which acquires 75% from the control packet of shares from the corporation of Telasi. The company acquired the right to manage Georgia’s 9th and 10th hydro-electric power stations with Khrami1 and Khrami 2, for 25 years.
24.53% of shares of JSC Telasi are under the ownership of the agency of ruling of the industry, the Ministry of Economic Development of Georgia and the other 0.47% is the property of private persons.
Q. When in 2003 Inter Rao UES acquired Telasi from US Company AES the representatives of Russian electro power holding stated that they were sure in their abilities and would make this industry profitable. Has your expectation been fulfilled?
A. Corporation Telasi supplies 440 thousand customers with 2 billion of kilowatts per hour. The number of energy limitation and power interruptions has been minimized. Trust in the quality of electro supplying has increased among our clients. The company succeeded in getting a sum for used electricity by customers. The main directions of the company’s operation are: reliability of electric power supplying, improving customer’s service, starting new technologies and modernization of the network totally. Telasi, whose customers in Tbilisi number 435 thousand managed to equip the remaining 15,000 citizens with individual counters. We changed the old air cables with insulated electric wirings, rehabilitated distributing units and equipped them with modern techniques and regenerated electro-transmitting units. The company finished a complete overhaul of some high powered substations. In terms of technical rehabilitation of distributing network in the year 2008 the company spent GEL 33.5 million. During the years 2003-2007 Telasi made capital investments to the amount of GEL 122 million.
Q. What additional works has your company done in order to prepare for the winter season?
A. For equipping customers with reliable electro power during the autumn and winter seasons of the years 2008-2009 Telasi fluently satisfied the balance of demand and supply. Under the conditions of a direct agreement electric power from the first hydro-electric power station Mtkvari Energy was supplied to Engurhesi, Khrami 1 and Khrami 2, Vardnilhesi, Ortachalhesi and Jinvalhesi. The company imported additional energy power of 300 million kilowatt per hour annually from Russia. After comparing the rehabilitation works JSC Telasi received positive results. Incidents of technical damages were sharply reduced. Starting high technologies and modern methods of management raised the insurance of supplying our capital. In order to rehabilitate the power distributing network of Tbilisi JSC Telasi from the year 2003 has invested GEL 155 million.
In 2009 in order to modernize the electricity network of Tbilisi the company plans to put in additional investments to the amount of GEL 25 million.
Q. When in 2003 Rao entered the Georgian market the representatives of opposition parties protested against it with rallies. Leaders of the opposition parties said that controlling the tariffs of electro power would be impossible. What should our expectations be this time? Should we expect increases in the price of electricity?
A. Our company is working according to the state law of Georgia. Today JSC Telasi subscribers pay for consumed energy according to a GNERC (Georgian National Energy Regulatory Commission) 2006 decision. The price, including VAT, is 13.48 tetri for 100 kWh, From 101 kWh to 300 kWh - the price is 16.001 tetri; and those subscribers who receive more or equal to 301 kWh have to pay 17.697 tetri. After the year 2006 JSC Telasi has not changed the tariff for electricity power. And for the next six years Telasi does not plan to rethink these prices. Telasi guaranties its customers to be in a stable tariff environment. From the year 2003 the shares of Telasi in customer’s tariff has changed a bit and is currently 7.89 tetri.
In 2006 JSC Telasi increased the margin of its profit by 0.74 tetri. Telasi does not plan to enlarge the occupied market share. The company has its own distributing network and does not collaborate with distributing companies from neighbouring countries.
Q. Are there any power stations under the ownership of Telasi?
A. Telasi does not own any hydro power stations. Under Telasi’s possession there are electro cables with the capacity of 110-10 and 0.4-6 kilowatt power manufacturing.
NOTE: The FINANCIAL failed to get information from the General Director of Inter Rao UES regarding the company’s operations in electricity import and export. Polina Gromova, PR Department of Inter Rao UES said that she failed to get the answers from the Director.
Written By Madona Gasanova
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