Curbing energy prices in Poland will cost 50 bln zlotys -PM (updated)

Energa S A

02/08/2022 14:01

(Adds analyst comment, market reaction)
    WARSAW, Aug 2 (Reuters) - The cost of curbing energy prices
in Poland will amount to around 50 billion zlotys ($10.88
billion) and will be financed largely by taxpayers with energy
firms also shouldering some of the burden, Prime Minister
Mateusz Morawiecki said on Tuesday.
    Morawiecki said the total comprised tax breaks, fuel
subsidies for households, and other measures.
    "The current cost related to fighting inflation, including
VAT and excise tax cuts, is around 30 billion zlotys. In
addition there is 11.5 billion in coal benefits ... Further
measures we have talked about will cost around 10-12 billions
more," Morawiecki told a news briefing. 
    "So the total cost is around 50 billion zlotys, the total
cost of all benefits related to carbons, fuel, heating, coal,
pellet and of course gas."
    Morawiecki said large part of the support would come out of
the budget but some of the cost would also be absorbed by energy
companies through lower hikes in energy tariffs. 
    Stocks of utilities were down on Tuesday - with the sector's
index losing 2.11% at 1310 GMT. 
    "Share prices are very sensitive to who will bear the cost
of potentially flat tariffs. So of course, any statement that
suggests that companies will be payers should be interpreted
negatively," said Pawel Puchalski, an analyst with Santander BM.
    The government agreed in July on a one-off payment of 3,000
zlotys to households to help them cover the rising cost of coal
amid surging energy prices prompted mainly by the war in
neighbouring Ukraine.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2Z01A6
    It is now working on a further support for households that
use other fuels such as pellets or heating oil. Morawiecki said
he would announce details of the package this week.


($1 = 4.5977 zlotys)

 (Reporting by Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk, Anna Koper, Pawel
Florkiewicz and Adrianna Ebert; Editing by Andrew Heavens and
Tomasz Janowski)
 ((anna.wlodarczak@thomsonreuters.com; +48226539700; Reuters
Messaging: anna.wlodarczak.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))