The State Duma of the Russian Federation adopted a law on the conditions for the forced sale of shares in power companies
The State Duma of the Russian Federation adopted in the third reading a law establishing the possibility of forced sale of shares of companies that violate the ban on combining electricity transmission and (or) dispatch management activities with production and (or) sales activities. The document was initiated by the government of the Russian Federation.
According to the provisions of the Law “On Electric Power Industry”, power companies within the same price zone of the wholesale energy market are prohibited from combining transmission and (or) dispatch control activities with generation and (or) sales. Accordingly, you cannot own property that allows you to do this. If these norms are violated, the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) has the right to make a decision on the forced reorganization of a legal entity or through the court to demand the termination of the activities of an individual entrepreneur.
However, such measures could not previously be applied if affiliated persons were involved in the violations, the explanatory note says. The adoption of the law will allow the FAS to apply to the court with a corresponding claim for the forced sale of shares (stakes) of companies that violate the ban within a group of persons or affiliates - this norm will be in effect from January 1, 2030. In accordance with the law, rights to voting stocks or shares in the authorized capital that are subject to forced sale can only be transferred following the results of an open auction held in accordance with the resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation dated October 21, 2013.
The conclusion of the State Duma Committee on Energy notes that violation of the ban on combining activities is now observed in some large companies with state participation.
The amendments adopted in the second reading exclude the provision providing for the obligation to install devices for remote and (or) automated introduction of restrictions on the mode of electricity consumption in connection with failure to fulfill obligations to pay for it, in cases determined by the procedure for complete and (or) partial limitation of the mode of electricity consumption by consumers - participants in the wholesale and retail markets, including its level, which is approved by the government of the Russian Federation. The law will come into force on the day of its official publication.
As Sergei Altukhov, deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Economic Policy, explained, the concentration of networks and energy production leads to monopolization of the market, and therefore to unreasonable tariff increases and cartel agreements. “After the adoption of the bill, the FAS will be able to forcefully sell shares of companies that violate the ban on combining electricity transmission and dispatching activities with production and sales activities. The procedure will be as follows: FAS will apply to the court with a corresponding claim for the forced sale of shares or interests in companies violating the ban. Thus, we will be able to regulate tariff policy in the power sector using market methods with the help of antimonopoly legislation and protect consumers from unjustified tariff increases,” he noted.