CEZ Distribuce to invest over Kc83bn in networks by 2025

Prague, June 18 (CTK) - CEZ Distribuce energy distributing company will invest over Kc83bn in its networks by 2025, with some Kc23bn to go to digital technologies, company representatives said at a press conference today.

They attributed the growth in investments to a changing environment which demands a faster access to information, and to a transition to decentralised economy.

Last year, the firm put over Kc11bn into the networks.

The number of active clients who are producing, accumulating (energy) and charging electric cars and who want a faster access to data has been rising quickly, said Martin Zmelik, CEZ Distribuce CEO.

"At the same time, we want to be prepared for growing demands regarding the grid connection of renewables, electromobility and investment in accumulation," Zmelik said.

The firm plans to install some 600,000 smart electricity meters (advanced meter management, AMM) in 2024 to 2026.

CEZ Distribuce wants to build 4,000 km of fibre optic networks by 2025.

It said the installed capacity of solar and wind parks is projected at up to 6,000 megawatts (MW) in 2030, while the current capacity is 2,000 MW.

Set up in March 2005, CEZ Distribuce has been operating in the Plzen, Karlovy Vary, Usti, Central Bohemia, Liberec, Hradec Kralove, Pardubice, Olomouc and Moravia-Silesia regions, and partly in the Zlin and Vysocina regions.

The firm operates about 166,000 km of networks and has 3.7 supply points.

CEZ Distribuce netted Kc7.3bn last year, a drop of 4.9 percent yr/yr. Sales increased by 2.5 percent to Kc48.4bn. It employed some 4,600 people last year.

CEZ energy group generated a net profit of Kc14.5bn on total sales of Kc206.2bn last year. The entire group has a 32,000-strong workforce, with 23,000 people working in Czechia.

Other distributors too modernise their networks. Apart from CEZ Distribuce, the other distribution firms are E.ON Distribuce and PREdistribuce.

PREdistribuce, distributing electricity in the capital city, plans to invest over Kc10bn in its networks during the aforementioned period, PREdistribuce head Milan Hampl told CTK today.

CEZ Distribuce's investment plans in 2020-2025 (Kc bn):

Source: CEZ Distribuce

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