SOFIA (Bulgaria), December 21 (SeeNews) – CEZ Electro Bulgaria [BUL:1CZ] and CEZ Distribution Bulgaria [BUL:3CZ], part of Czech power utility CEZ Group, dismissed on Thursday all accusations of the competition regulator and announced they will challenge in court the imposed fines.
Earlier on Thursday, Bulgaria’s Commission for Protection of Competition said it fined the local power supply and distribution units of Austrian energy group EVN and Czech group CEZ for abuse of their dominant position on the market.
CEZ Electro Bulgaria and CEZ Distribution Bulgaria were fined 1.1 million levs ($666,700/562,400 euro) each.
The fines were imposed because the local units of CEZ and EVN were implementing joint common strategies and practices discriminating against independent traders outside the respective groups and restricting trade in electricity at freely negotiated prices, the competition regulator said.
The companies have 14 days to challenge the regulator’s decision before the Supreme Administrative Court.
(1 euro=1.95583 levs)