Similarly, companies that exported major amounts of energy produced by Romanian companies doubled their turnovers in one year, with one of them making a turnover of EUR135 million with just three people.
As in 2010, the ranking of the largest private companies in energy trading is headed by Tinmar-Ind, a company controlled by Augustin Oancea, a very low-profile businessman from Campina.
According to data provided by the Trade Registry, the company posted turnover of EUR331.7 million last year, almost double as much as in 2010, while its net profit remained at a comparable level of EUR5.1 million. All this was done with just 52 employees.
Tinmar-Ind became involved in energy trade at the beginning of 2007, when the company had turnover of around EUR30 million. As opposed to other private businesses in energy trade, whose accelerated growth was based on direct contracts with Hidroelectrica, the cheapest energy producer in Romania, Tinmar doesn’t get its electricity directly from the state-run producer, but buys significant amounts of energy from the OPCOM energy exchange or from other trading platforms.
Tinmar’s sources of energy include Rovinari, Turceni and Craiova energy complexes, Electrocentrale Galati and Nuclearelectrica. In fact, Tinmar’s 2011 turnover exceeded the businesses reported by some of the largest energy producers in Romania, such as CEN Craiova and CEN Rovinari. According to the latest statements from company representatives, the turnover increase was based on a rise in the volume of energy traded, from 0.9 TWh in 2010 to 1.4 TWh. The number of clients rose from 80 to 150 companies.
Four times higher profit than Hidroelectrica
No. 2 in the ranking of the largest private companies in energy trade is Alpiq RomEnergie, formerly EHOL Distribution, a company controlled by Switzerland’s Alpiq, behind which market sources say is businessman Bogdan Buzaianu, the artisan of Energy Holding, perhaps one of the best-known energy businesses in Romania.
Alpiq RomEnergie is one of the largest buyers of hydropower, with the company buying 1.57 TWh of energy for which it paid 204.5 million lei (around EUR45 million) to Hidroelectrica. The company bought hydropower for just RON130 per MWh, while last year the energy price on the spot market of the energy exchange was RON221 per MWh, while bilateral contracts were sealed at RON162 per MWh. Under the circumstances, its turnover reached EUR169.1 million last year, 19% more than in 2010, and the company’s profit was EUR6.2 million.
In the meantime Hidroelectrica ended 2011 with a profit of just EUR1.4 million and went insolvent on June 20 2012.
This week and the next, all holders of direct contracts with Hidroelectrica will renegotiate the contracts that cost the state over EUR1.5 billion in the past ten years, and unless the state gets what it wants, the contracts could be terminated.
Rudnap is another company that did good business with the state in the energy sector. With just three employees, the company registered in Cyprus last year posted turnover of EUR135 million after in 2010 it had reported a EUR75.7 million figure. The company came into the spotlight after in the autumn of 2010 it got hold of a huge contract for exporting energy. Participants in the contract were the largest electricity producers in Romania – Hidroelectrica, Nuclearelectrica and energy complexes in the Oltenia area, with state-run Electrica also involved. Basically Electrica put together the energy basket from state-run producers and sold it on to Serbia’s Rudnap. In all 500 MW of energy were sold to Rudnap, and many companies on the market accused this massive export of energy of lack of transparency.
Also among the top companies are Transenergo COM, which last year had turnover of EUR130.5 million, up by around 58% on 2010, and by Alpiq Romindustries (formerly Buzmann Industries i.e.), another company with direct access to hydropower, behind which is also businessman Bogdan Buzaianu, according to market sources.
In all the top five private companies in energy trade in Romania last year reached turnover of almost EUR900 million, which compares with around EUR600 million in 2010. The Trade Registry has not provided data on Energy Holding, a company that has dominated private-sector energy trade for years.
(English version by Daniela Stoican)