Final Word from Thursday, June 18, 2009
Imagine the following: 1) Parliament passes a rider giving ČEZ favorable access to carbon credits. 2) International Power, which must now pay more for its own credits, sees the value of its Czech assets plummet. 3) J&T buys the assets on the cheap. 4) J&T gives notice that it will cease to use coal from Czech Coal to fire Opatovice power plant, formerly owned by Int. Power. 5) J&T sells Int. Power's stake in Pražská teplárenská to ČEZ. 6) ČEZ cancels Czech Coal's contract to supply Pražská teplárenská's Energotrans plant. 7) J&T builds a coal warehouse and gives notice that Czech Coal will no longer supply nearby Elektrárna Komořany. 7) J&T and ČEZ strike a deal with the SŽDC rail-line operator and begin importing coal from their Mibrag JV for supplying Komořany and Opatovice. 8) The EU imposes a negligible antitrust fine. 9) Czech Coal, its customers gone, is brought to its knees. 10) ČEZ buys Czech Coal's mines on the cheap. 11) Parliament extends the mining limits at ČEZ's new mines. 12) A vertical monopoly is born.[Czech Republic railways]
Glossary of difficult words
rider - an addition or amendment to a piece of legislation that typically does not relate to the main subject of the legislation;
carbon credits - CO2 allowances;
to plummet - to decrease rapidly in value or amount;
on the cheap - at a low cost;
Pražská teplárenská - a Prague heating company;
Mibrag - a German coal-mining company;
JV - joint venture;
negligible - so small or unimportant that it is not worth considering;
to bring someone to his knees - reduce someone to a state of weakness or submission;
vertical monopoly - control by a single entity of all aspects of the production, distribution and sale of a product (in this case coal and electricity).