Who will pay for the state’s ADMIE stake?
The state is currently unable to pay the amount required for the acquisition of a 34 percent stake in the country’s Independent Power Transmission Operator (ADMIE), as provided for in a plan approved by the country’s creditors, which could possibly lead to a fresh hike in electricity rates.
Public Power Corporation is supposed to transfer the 66 percent majority stake to an investor through an ongoing international tender, with the remaining 34 percent to be sold to the state at a price proportionate to that arranged with the strategic investor.
By the end of the transaction with PPC the investor will have to sign a shareholders’ agreement with the owner of the other stake, which by law should be the Greek state, and the tender has now entered its final stage. The solution being examined by the government provides for the imposition of a concession levy for lignite reserves and water resources that the state has conceded to PPC for free, to offset the price that the state must pay to the corporation for the 34 percent share of ADMIE.
Such a plan would require a legal amendment and would likely create problems for the government due to the rise in the cost of power production and therefore customer rates.
