Daniel Křetínský’s EPH sold Pražská teplárenská to Veolia. The transaction price has not been revealed.. The deal has yet to be approved by the Office for the Protection of Competition (ÚOHS). Veolia will also acquire Hungarian heat producer Bert.
EPH holds a 100% stake in Pražská teplárenská through EP Energy. Křetínský stated that Veolia had a serious interest in the company. “In the context of our long-term cooperation with Veolia, the partnership agreement for building low-emission heat sources for its needs and, last but not least, the quality of Veolia as a heating system operator, we finally agreed with the divestiture,” said Křetínský.
In 2017, Křetínský acquired a quarter of the shares in Pražská teplárenská from Prague. At that time, these shares were valued at CZK 3.1 billion.
Pražská teplárenská is one of the largest heating companies in the Czech Republic in terms of the number of facilities operated. It supplies heat to more than 230,000 households and dozens of office buildings, industrial plants, schools, and medical facilities. Last year, the company’s net profit rose by 3.3 percent year on year to CZK 580 million.
Veolia will also acquire the largest heat producer in Budapest, Bert, where EPH holds almost 96 percent through EP Energy. The Antimonopoly Office must also approve this transaction, and certain other technical conditions must be met. Neither party disclosed the price of this deal.
EPH was founded in 2009. Křetínský became the majority owner of the holding in 2017, which now holds 94 percent of the shares. EPH includes more than 70 companies in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Germany, Hungary, Britain, Ireland, Italy, and France. Last year, year-on-year operating profit EBITDA increased by ten percent to CZK 56 billion (2.1 billion euros), consolidated revenues then increased by more than a fifth to CZK 230 billion (8.6 billion euros).
Křetínský is regularly ranked among the wealthiest Czechs. Křetínský also holds shares in other heating companies. These are Plzeňská teplárenská, the North Bohemian company United Energy or the East Bohemian Elektrárny Opatovice.
Veolia employs almost 180,000 people worldwide. In the Czech Republic, Veolia Energie ČR and its subsidiaries operate in the Moravian-Silesian, Olomouc, South Bohemian, Plzeň, Karlovy Vary, Ústí nad Labem, Liberec, and Central Bohemian regions, as well as in Prague. The company has about 1,600 employees.