The heat generation tariff increased by 16% compared with January 2019 / Photo from UNIAN
The group has virtually monopolized electricity exports, as it controls both coal mining and coal-fired power plants, which sell electricity abroad.
Ukraine in February 2019 bought electricity from coal-fired power plants at prices that are 50% higher than Europe bought electricity from Ukrainian tycoon Rinat Akhmetov's group.
State-run enterprise Energomarket said that the average selling price of electricity set by thermal power plants (TPPs) in the wholesale electricity market in February 2019 was UAH 2,167 (EUR 70.2) per MWh with a cumulative total (EUR 0.72 per kWh), the Ukrayinska Pravda online newspaper said, citing a probe by the Nashi Groshi journalists.
Thus, the heat generation tariff increased by 16% compared with January 2019.
"This is a new record high tariff by TPPs in Ukraine's history," the newspaper said.
Read alsoUkraine's antitrust agency: DTEK not considered monopolist
However, electricity sold on the HUPX Hungarian Power Exchange in February 2019 was EUR 49.56, or about UAH 1,530 per MWh.
"This means that the price on the Ukrainian energy market is 45% higher than the price on the Hungarian Power Exchange," it said.
Rinat Akhmetov's DTEK is the largest supplier of electricity generated by coal-fired power plants.
In December 2017, the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine issued a recommendation to the Ministry of Energy and the National Commission for Energy and Energy Regulation on opening the market for power imports, but the agencies did not cleared imports of cheaper electricity from Europe.
Electricity produced by the Burshtynska and Dobrotvirska thermal power plants is sold abroad. Both TPPs are part of the so-called Burshtyn Energy Island, which is disconnected from the power grids of Ukraine and synchronized with the European grids. These TPPs first sell their electricity to Energomarket at higher rates and then buy it back at lower wholesale rates for selling it abroad.
For 2018, the gap of prices was as follows: DTEK sold electricity to Energomarket for UAH 1.8 per kWh and then bought it back for UAH 1.59 per kWh. In annual terms, it amounted to UAH 1.3 billion (over EUR 42 million) in subsidizing Akhmetov's group at the expense of all producers of cheaper electricity, namely nuclear power plants, in the country.
The group has virtually monopolized electricity exports, as it controls both coal mining and coal-fired power plants, which sell electricity abroad.
Hungary is a main buyer of Ukrainian electricity, which bought almost 3.6 billion kWh, or 58% of total electricity exports.