photo: Archives/Will Slovakia manage the fight against rising prices? The state carrier will pay up to 18 million more for traction electricity in 2022!
Traction electricity is an essential commodity on the railways. It passes through the railway lines and is vital to driving electric trains. All carriers use traction electricity in the territory of the Slovak Republic without distinction, as well as state, private, freight, and passenger. However, it should be mentioned that electric locomotives are a huge key to the greening of rail transport. Compared to diesel locomotives, we are talking about virtually zero emissions.
With the increasing electrification of sections and new modern locomotives in the fleets of freight and passenger carriers, electricity consumption is growing. Electricity is becoming an increasingly important item in the management of carriers. That is why any increase in energy prices is a critical and sensitive issue from the point of view of railway undertakings. The railway infrastructure in Slovakia gets managed by the state company ŽSR (Railways of the Slovak Republic). In addition to railway lines, ŽSR is also responsible for power lines and, through its organizational unit, Železničná energetika, as a supplier, covers the distribution of traction electricity.
Due to the increase in energy and service prices, the railway company Slovensko, a.s., (ZSSK) will take restrictive measures in 2022, as in previous years. It wants to mitigate the negative impact of price increases on its economy. In November 2021, Tomáš Kováč, a spokesman and director of the communication department of the national train carrier, informed.
Despite the steady rise in input prices, increasing fares on Slovak railways is not currently planned for 2022 because the governing coalition did not express support for this step. The aim of the Railway Company Slovakia in the new year is to offer passengers quality and safe services, address the public to increase the number of passengers, and thus ensure transport revenues and own revenues at the same level as in 2019.
For the Railway Company Cargo Slovakia, a.s., the new year will be an even more significant challenge than the previous one. The Chairman of the Board of ZSSK CARGO presented the CARGA plans for 2022, which will be a considerable challenge for the state-owned company, as the price for traction electricity will make a hole in the state carrier's budget. worth EUR 18 million. "Market prices have gone crazy. The cost of electricity attacks historical highs. The price we have paid this year is approaching thirty million. According to the plan and the price we received next year, there are 48 million. On one single item, and that is the price of traction electricity, there is an increase of 18 million euros, which is a massive blow that we have to deal with somehow and we cannot balance in our management. Therefore, we have reached all customers. Unfortunately, even those with contracts concluded in 2022 that we must update this price by increasing this single item. We have nowhere to retreat. We have made the company more efficient in terms of costs. We have to look at the revenue side, and that's such a huge jump that it was unpredictable. "