In a press release, RAO UES said that CEZ is interested in reforming the state’s power sector and is prepared to assist, as a strategic partner to Territorial Generation Company-4 (TGC-4), in building new generation units at the site of the Shchekinskaya thermal power plant (TPP) and in modernizing the plant’s existing power units.
RAO UES said that CEZ is primarily interested in constructing a new 400MW to 420MW combined-cycle unit at the plant. TGC-4 and CEZ will establish a joint venture to implement the construction project. RAO UES commented that this is the first time that a joint venture has been established between a foreign investor and one of the company’s generation units.
The state-owned utility added that, in the future, if deemed appropriate, the joint venture would implement one more project at the Shchekinskaya TPP and would construct two coal coal-fired power units of 200MW to 250MW each.
CEZ engineers will visit the Shchekinskaya plant site in the near future to review its technical and economic performance and the results will serve as a basis for the joint venture, which TGC-4 and CEZ plan to draft and negotiate by the end of May 2007.
CEZ and RAO UES are to set up a joint working group comprised of experts from both companies to allow closer cooperation. RAO UES also said that CEZ executives have shown an interest in the additional share offerings of its generation companies.
Weekly publication New Europe has cited CEZ spokesman Ladislav Kriz as saying that, although the agreement does not yet mean that CEZ will enter the Russian energy sector, the company hopes to do so in the future.
