May 2011 – The new levy, which is paid by final electricity customers (the “Levy”, in Slovak: odvod) was introduced by Government Decree No. 426/2010 Coll. (the “Government Decree”). The Government Degree provides details on the amount of levy on electricity supplied to final customers and the manner of its collection. The Levy is for the purpose of financing the National Nuclear Fund for De-Commissioning of Nuclear Facilities and Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and Radioactive Waste (the “Nuclear Fund”).
The Government Decree was adopted in line with Sections 7(4) and (5) of Act No. 238/2006 Coll. on the National Nuclear Fund for the Decommissioning of Nuclear Installations and Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel and Radioactive Waste and on amendment to certain laws (the “Act”). As set out in Section 7(1)(b) of the Act, the Levy is one of the Resources of the Nuclear Fund. The Act conferred on the Government the power to adopt government decree of this kind from 1 July 2006; however, the Government adopted the Government Decree not earlier than 6 October 2010.
The Government Decree sets out the details of the manner of collection of the Levy in the form of the Effective Rate of the Levy for Coverage of Debt for Relevant Year (the "Effective Levy Rate"), keeping records thereof by the transmission and distribution system operators (the “System Operators”), and the manner and deadlines for payment of such Levy by the System Operators to the account of the Nuclear Fund.
The Effective Levy Rate for 2011 is determined at the rate of EUR 3.00 per one megawatt hour of electricity supplied to final electricity customers. The Effective Levy Rate will be increased annually as of 1 July by the factor of nuclear inflation recorded in the preceding year as determined by the Statistical Bureau of the Slovak Republic and rounded to two decimal places[1].
The final electricity customers are obliged to pay the Effective Levy Rate according to the manner of their connection to the system and arrangements between the final electricity customer and the electricity supplier or System Operator to:
(a) the System Operator; or
(b) the electricity supplier or electricity producer that subsequently pays the Effective Levy Rate to the relevant System Operator.[2]
Thereafter, System Operators must pay (remit) the Effective Levy Rate collected from the final electricity customers to the account of the Nuclear Fund. The Government Decree provides for the following exemptions from payment of the Effective Levy Rate for:
(a) own consumption of electricity in the electricity generation process;
(b) own consumption of electricity by producer of electricity;
(c) consumption of electricity consumed for re-pumping in pumped-storage hydroelectricity power plants; and
(d) electricity designated for export.
The form of the Levy and manner of the Levy’s collection laid down in the Government Decree, however, may raise questions as to its compliance with Sections 7(1)(b) and 7(4) of the Act which provide that the Levy is part of the price of electricity supplied to final electricity customers.
We are continually monitoring current developments in energy legislation and will provide you with more information in the upcoming issues of our newsletter.
For further information, please contact Miroslav Nemeth, Of Counsel, at .
[1] Section 3 and 4 of the Government Decree
[2] Section 2(3) to (6) of the Government Decree