After the city’s energy company ran into financial difficulties, Wien Energie asked the federal government for support. On Sunday, politicians and e-business representatives were hastily convened to hold a crisis summit. Result: The aid was promised “of course”, Energy Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) announced on Monday. However, there are still open questions that need to be clarified.
“Open questions still need to be clarified to help quickly,” Gewessler wrote on Twitter. Namely with the city of Vienna, which owns 100 percent of Wien Energie. The federal government cannot directly support the company. That is why discussions are still taking place with the city council on Monday.
Aid was promised at the crisis summit, as security of supply for two million customers was central, Gewessler emphasized.
The background is that the city group needs money to continue buying electricity and gas on the stock exchanges. To be able to make long-term purchases, companies must deposit collateral, experts explain. How high they are ultimately depends on the prices. Because the energy price has risen enormously recently, this can lead to liquidity problems. The same goes for Wien Energie.
“Are not bankrupt”
The company currently has the problem of not being able to make its payments on time, but is not completely insolvent, Wien Energie emphasized and denied the associated media reports on Sunday evening. “No, Wien Energie is not insolvent,” it said in a statement. “Wien Energie and Wiener Stadtwerke are solid, economically sound companies with excellent creditworthiness.” Collateral, which now requires the federal government to intervene, would come back once the commercial transactions are settled.
ÖVP Vienna demands “complete transparency”
The Viennese ÖVP, meanwhile, is demanding full transparency from the city government and more possibilities to control the city’s outsourced companies, such as Wien Energie. If the federal government can help stabilize Wien Energie, which is in financial difficulty, “of course it should,” said ÖVP club president Markus Wölbitsch at a press conference on Monday. “Of course with the simultaneous participation and full transparency of the City of Vienna”. Wien Energie is 100 percent owned by the City of Vienna but is an outsourced company, “meaning it is exempt from many of the opposition’s control rights”.
In the past, the ÖVP had always demanded that Wien Energie have a strategic partner, but the SPÖ had always rejected this, criticized Wölbitsch. About two years ago, Wien Energie announced that it would withdraw from the joint electricity trade with Lower Austria and Burgenland because it “wanted to become independent in the electricity trade”, the club boss said. He does not think it is unusual that energy companies sometimes have to speculate on the energy exchanges. However, they found out about the liquidity problems “out of nowhere”, which, according to the ÖVP politician, was “unique”.
“Withdrawing trust” in case of mismanagement
If it turns out that mismanagement has brought Wien Energie into the current situation, “then that is a reason to withdraw the trust of the city government”, he emphasized. Talks will be held with the other opposition parties to coordinate the handling of the case.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
