Gazprom ready to privatize Lithuanian power station

Gazprom has confirmed its participation in the privatization of the Kaunasthermal power station, the Lithuanian Lietuvos zinios newspaper reported.Three potential investors have confirmed their participation in the tender.These are the consortium of German companies Verbundnetz Gas and StadtwerkeLeipzig, the Finnish Fortum Oy company and the consortium of Gazprom,Lithuanian Dujotekana and US Clement Power Venture. An agreement onprivatization has already been signed this year and the winner will beannounced in two weeks. The consortium of Itera and its Lithuanian branchItera Lietuva withdrew its application, according to them, due topoliticization of the power station's privatization. According to thetender's provisions, a new owner of the station is to retain a stable pricefor energy at a level of $0.0624 kilowatt/hour for 15 years. This figurecan be corrected only in accordance with an inflation rate and gas prices.The general director of Dujotekana declared that he had practically nodoubts that the consortium headed by Gazprom would win the tender. "Ourmain advantage is Gazprom who guarantees stable gas supplies and stableprices. It is obvious that the consortium is interested in theprivatization of a power station that uses gas", he specified. The Kaunasthermal power station generates 90 percent of Kaunas's heat consumption. Itis a branch of the Kauno energija company. The station's balance sheetvalue is about $421m. Kauno energija plans to sold the station for $385mand thus to decrease the amount of its debt that is estimated at $893m. .

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