NET4GAS has successfully completed the first stage of consolidation. The new management will focus on national strategic interests

• Based on the proposal of the Supervisory Board of NET4GAS, NET4GAS Holdings has made a decision regarding the new phase in the company's development, which reflects not only the country's economic interests, but also national strategic considerations as regards the modernization of the energy sector and the safe exit from coal. Milan Váša will be appointed as Executive Director for Operations to work alongside Rastislav Jamrich, formerly appointed as Chief Financial Officer. Current Executive Officers Andreas Rau and Radek Benčík will leave the management. 

"Thanks to the unwavering dedication of everyone involved, we have been succeeding in consolidating the company's expenditures and in financially stabilizing NET4GAS overall. This effort has been underscored by the awarding of an improved rating by the Fitch international rating agency, following the acquisition of NET4GAS by the state. Simultaneously, the company has prevailed in the first international arbitration within the framework of a dispute with Gazprom Export concerning its failure to make payments under a gas transmission agreement," explained NET4GAS Holdings Executive Svatopluk Vnouček, adding that Andreas Rau and Radek Benčík deserve to be thanked for a job well done and wished much success in their future professional endeavors.

"NET4GAS has completed a transitional period, specifically the first stage of consolidation, during which the company was incorporated into the structure of the public ownership. Results achieved thus far show that the government had made an economically sound decision by investing into the acquisition of NET4GAS. The subsequent stage will follow in the successful steps taken up to now, focusing on the company's strategic development under the new management," explained Petr Doškář, NET4GAS's Chairman of the Supervisory Board.

Andreas Rau and Radek Benčík will be replaced by Milan Váša, an experienced executive who has up until now served as Chairman of the Board of Directors with ČEPS Invest a.s. In addition, he has extensive gas supply sector experience from holding upper management positions at the E.ON Group. Likewise, Rastislav Jamrich has more than 25 years of experience working in energy sector, where corporations that have relied on his financial and energy-related expertise include Slovakia's transmission system operator EUSTREAM a.s. and ZSE a.s. from the E.ON Group. The new management will work together with NET4GAS's team of seasoned professionals headed by Strategy Director Michal Slabý, who from now on will also serve as one of the company's proxies.

"Our goal is to invest into the development of the gas infrastructure, which will include expanding the network to facilitate the connection of large heating plants. These steps will make it easier to switch key energy facilities from coal to gas. At the same time, we are preparing to make investments into the hydrogen infrastructure to enable hydrogen to be gradually introduced into the Czech gas network," said NET4GAS's Executive Officer Rastislav Jamrich.

From now on, the company will be headed by two executive officers, with the support of proxies. This arrangement will distribute responsibility for strategic decisions, enable mutual oversight, and ensure that decisions are taken in an impartial manner.

Being the sole transmission system operator in the Czech Republic, NET4GAS plays an irreplaceable role in securing stable and secure supplies of gas to Czech residential and business customers. The financial benefits of the government's investment into the acquisition of the company have been confirmed by reports issued by various international institutions, including EY, Citigroup, and Grant Thornton. The reports contain detailed assessments of the economic aspects of the transaction, including the company's present and future revenues, maintenance costs, and investments into infrastructure, as well as anticipated developments on the European gas market.

Further, NET4GAS owns important assets in the form of advanced technologies that secure the supply of gas to Czech households, including more than 4,000 kilometers of pipelines that not only form the backbone gas transmission network in the Czech Republic, but also serve for gas transit to other European countries. Furthermore, the company operates three border transfer stations, where gas is received and forwarded to other countries, five compressor stations, which enable gas to be transported over long distances and over various elevations, and 100 transfer stations, which serve for transporting gas to the national distribution network and to gas storage facilities.

In addition to physical assets, NET4GAS holds cash reserves in the approximate amount of nine billion crowns. Moreover, the company has a substantial number of financial receivables, particularly from Gazprom Export, a Russian corporation that owes NET4GAS transmission capacity fees relating to gas transit. NET4GAS is actively pursuing steps to collect these receivables, where the latest decision of the arbitral tribunal has recognized the company's claims. Based on currently available information, NET4GAS expects to be holding over 10 billion crowns in cash at the end of this year, a fact that underscores its financial stability and the effective nature of the consolidation process. A new assessment of the company's operations will be provided by ČEPS in its consolidated annual report in the second half of October.

The press release can be downloaded here.