– If prices in the south increase to, for example, NOK four, we could risk losing up to NOK 70 million. If that happens, the company will go bankrupt, says chairman of Meløy Energi, Rolf Inge Sleipnes. It came to light when Sleipnes briefed the municipal council in Meløy on Thursday about the power failure the company has made. A very favorable fixed price agreement of 126 øre/kWh meant that overnight they gained 800 new customers in southern Norway. This corresponds to 15 percent of the company’s customer base. The new customers in the south have saved a lot. In a neighborhood in Eastern Norway, four households claim that they have saved over NOK 200,000 thanks to Meløy Energi. At the same time, the agreements have cost Meløy Energi NOK 17 million so far this year. Therefore, the company has offered the new customers payment to get them over to a spot price agreement. So far, very few have made use of this agreement. Now the company is approaching a limit. The risk of bankruptcy is real. – Feels an extreme responsibility In the municipal council on Thursday, Sleipnes provided information on how the company will be able to survive. – The most important message is that the board of Meløy Energi has drawn up a plan to save the company, and that we are dependent on having an owner behind us while we implement the necessary measures. The company’s future is largely in the hands of the 800 new customers in the south. Rolf Inge Sleipnes, chairman Meløy Energi. Photo: Marius Eriksen Guttormsen / news – If all those with a fixed price in the south agree, the company will not go bankrupt. On Friday, the company will receive figures on how many have agreed to the agreement. Meløy Energi’s main focus is now ensuring that workplaces are safe. – I feel an extreme responsibility to help find a solution to this, says the chairman. As of today, the loss of NOK 17 million is something they can handle. But a price increase that is too large will therefore lead to the hook on the door for the company that contributes millions to the municipal coffers. Losing 4 million manageable Mayor Sigurd Stormo (Ap) says that Meløy Energy has been of enormous importance to the municipality. At the same time, he is clear that the company’s situation will not initially affect them. – This should not cause the municipality to have an immediate problem. It is the company that is in crisis and that is where it needs to be cleaned up. On average, the municipality has had an annual dividend of between NOK three and NOK 4 million from the company over the past ten years. Sigurd Stormo (Ap), mayor of Meløy municipality. Photo: Malin Nygård Solberg / news It is already clear that this money will not be included in the municipality’s next budget. Stormo says it is money they would like to have, but still manage without it. – 4 million is a lot of money for the municipality, but in a budget of close to NOK 800 million, it is manageable. The mayor trusts that the board fulfills its duty to act and gets control of what has happened. Understanding the customers Asgeir Tomasgard is a professor at NTNU and has electricity prices as one of his research fields. He tells news that the price market is now extremely difficult to predict. – Then we have to predict the development of the situation in the gas market in Europe and we have to predict the weather, and it is very difficult because we are in a situation we have not seen before. – The gas market is affected by a war situation and the fact that Russian gas is almost gone. He fully understands that Meløy Energi is nervous about its fixed price agreement. Asgeir Tomasgard, professor at NTNU. Photo: Lars Bang/NTNU news has previously spoken to several people in the south who seized the opportunity when the rumor spread about the favorable electricity agreement with the company in the north. They have no intention of coming to Meløy Energi’s aid. – That is very understandable. They have entered into an agreement with a commercial player and are making good money from it with cheaper electricity and because the electricity subsidy scheme makes it attractive in some cases. Tomasgard says that it is up to the customer to assess the risk of the company going bankrupt and then having to find a new electricity supplier. Meløy Energi is in danger of going bankrupt, after forgetting to remove an offer for customers in southern Norway.
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Meløy Energi risks bankruptcy with electricity prices above four kroner – news Nordland
