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Analysis on How to Get €15 mn for Emissions to Arrive in a Few Days
Tuesday 15 June 2010 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, June 15 (TASR) - Environment Minister Jozef Medved told TASR on Tuesday that the ministry is expecting a legal analysis later this week on how to proceed to get €15 million from the controversial deal between the state and a U.S.-based company called Interblue Group involving the sale of emission quotas back in 2008.
"Assuming that there were flaws, or that there were laws violated in the United States, we'll reconsider if it will be Slovakia that will enter the process, or if it will be the agency (a law firm - ed. note) that is carrying out the analysis for Slovakia. This is because when a law is violated in the U.S., anyone who finds this out can act in a given case," according to Medved.
The minister said he was not afraid of the possibility that the coming personnel changes at the ministry (as expected in the post-election aftermath, in combination with the planned July 1 mergers of ministries) would actually complicate the emissions case. Medved stressed that 35 million tonnes of emission quotas, originally set for Interblue Group, is still in the hands of the state, and that a green scheme is currently being prepared. Also, an advisor to assist in the sale is being selected, he said. Besides the amount of 2008 emissions, there is another package of 32 million tonnes from 2009 to be sold, informed Medved.
"My successor, whoever that may be ... must get involved in this process, as now it's in a totally different stage than back when I took my office," said Medved, adding that the alleged legal successor of Interblue Group, a Swiss-based company Interblue Group Europe, is still trying to communicate with the ministry. However, Medved warned that there is no trade partner after the non-existing Interblue Group that the ministry would recognise. "I think there's nothing to talk about, we're getting ready for the emission quotas to be sold."
In 2008, Slovakia sold 15 million tonnes of emission quotas to Interblue Group for €75 million, at a rate of €5.05 per tonne. According to the Opposition, media and the present ministry management, this sum was about half what it should have been. As well, an extra euro per tonne should have been paid by the company for green projects but wasn't.
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