Energy, Estonia, Legislation, Mergers and take-overs

Eesti Energia forecasts that in the next five years the consumption of alternative energy sources is to double. "While today we produce 700 gigawatt-hours of electricity a year from renewable energy sources, domestic garbage and oil shale gas, our goal is that by 2020 it should more than double. It makes up about a quarter of Estonian electricity consumption," Eesti Energia CEO Hando Sutter said in the company's press release. He added that to realize the plans the company is to merge its renewable energy production units under one leadership.

To increase renable energy production, Eesti Energia is preparing to establish new wind energy production capacities. The first investment decision will probably be made in 2017. The company is to also enter the market with a full service solution based on solar panels.

The merging of the group's renewable energy units is part of Eesti Energia's strategic action plan for the next five years, the goal of which is to increase the group's sales and productivity also in a situation where energy prices do not improve considerably. "The present state and outlooks of energy markets have changed considerably compared to a few years ago. Electricity and oil prices have reached the lowest level in 12 years. In our strategic action plan we are focusing on activities that we can do ourselves to increase the competitive ability of Eesti Energia and realize the owner's expectations," Sutter said.

To reach the strategic goals, Eesti Energia is to increase the efficiency of its existing oil shale supplies by continuing with technological development, increasing the use of alternative energy sources like wind, biomass, oil shale gas and solar energy in energy production, and finding new markets and consumers for its products and services.

Since Estonia has reached its renewable energy goals, there is an opportunity to sell renewable energy to countries that do not reach these. The first renewable energy export transactions on the European Union's statistical trade market are planned to be carried out in 2017, after changes to the Electricity Market Act have taken effect.

To achieve improved efficiency and synergy, Eesti Energia's biggest energy production units, Olitoostus and Narva power stations, would be merged into one company, which is to be named Enefit Energiatootmine.