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Home › Dodgy Deals ›
Dodgy Deal
EPHCzech Republic

Company – Active

This profile is actively maintained
Lead organisation:
BankTrack
Contact:

climate@banktrack.org

nature@banktrack.org

Last update: 2022-11-11 00:00:00
EPH. Photo: ...

Company – Active

This profile is actively maintained
Lead organisation:
BankTrack
Contact:

climate@banktrack.org

nature@banktrack.org

Last update: 2022-11-11 00:00:00
Why this profile?

Why this profile?

EPH has taken over many coal assets that were divested from by other utilities because of climate and pollution reasons. As a result, rather than being closed down rapidly as required by the Paris Agreement, these assets stay in operation longer than they otherwise would have. These assets continue to exacerbate climate change even when converted to allegedly cleaner energy sources such as biomass or gas, threatening a socially just energy transition in Europe.

What must happen

Banks should avoid financing to EPH because of its significant coal operations. EPH even continues to invest in new coal power and plans to keep its coal power stations operational until 2038, whereas limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees means coal should be phased out in OECD countries by 2030. Additionally, EPH is converting coal power plants to burning wood biomass which emits more carbon, per-unit of energy, than coal. EPH fails to align its business model with the goals set in the Paris Climate Agreement. (See also the Principles for Paris-aligned Financial Institutions).

About
Sectors Biomass Electric Power Generation, Coal Electric Power Generation , Coal Mining, Electric Power Distribution, Hydroelectric Power Generation, Nuclear Electric Power Generation, Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas, Solar Electric Power Generation, Wind Electric Power Generation
Headquarters
Ownership

EPH is privately owned. Half is owned by Daniel Kretínský, a Czech businessman, and the remaining shares belong to J&T Energy Holding and a group of EPH managers.

Subsidiaries
EP Energy – Czech Republic
SPP Infrastructure – Slovakia
Website https://www.epholding.cz/en/

 EPH (Energetický a Průmyslový Holding) is a Czech-based multinational company operating predominantly in the Central European energy sector. The company operates the Eustream pipeline, which transports gas between Russia and the EU, as well as gas storage facilities in Slovakia, Czechia and Austria. It also produces energy from a variety of sources, including coal, biomass, gas, oil, solid fuels, thermoelectric, hydroelectric, nuclear, wind and photovoltaic. Across Europe, the company currently operates seven biomass plants or units that mainly burn wood, four coal power plants that co-fire with wood, and five coal power plants. In addition, EPH operates Mibrag and Leag, two of the largest coal mining companies in Germany.

Impacts

Impact on human rights and communities

Health impacts: In 2018, a report by Europe Beyond Coal found EPH to be the second most harmful coal company to health in Europe. EPH operates a major share of the lignite power plants in Germany, which have negative health impacts on communities living in close proximity to the plants. The report links an estimated 1,460 premature deaths to EPH’s operations in 2016, along with other respiratory and cardiovascular diseases caused by the company’s activities.

In 2012, EPH’s subsidiary Biomasse Crotone, which operates two biomass power plants in Southern Italy, was sued by local farmers for lack of compliance with air pollution monitoring policies. They also reported a high incidence of tumours and lung diseases in the area, later confirmed by the regional healthcare agency.

In October 2022, Biomasse Crotone among other energy companies was accused of illegal waste trafficking, association with criminal groups and fraud against the Italian National Energy Service Manager (Gse). Until 2017, their plants were allegedly burning wood chip biomass mixed with rubbish and waste, such as tar, asphalt and tires, releasing toxic substances and harming the health of nearby communities.


Impact on climate

Carbon emissions: EPH is Europe’s third most polluting power utility, with annual coal CO2 emissions of about 62.5 million tonnes CO2 in 2021 – nearly as much as Italy’s entire power sector. In 2019, EPH was estimated to be responsible for about 11% of all coal-related CO2 emissions in the EU. According to the 2022 Global Coal Exit List, EPH’s annual thermal coal production is 37.5MT. Of the power it produces, 32% is generated by coal.

EPH claims to be a leader in decarbonisation, and it has committed to reduce its CO2 emissions from existing power plants by 60% by 2030, as well as to reaching net zero emissions by 2050. However, it has been consistently acquiring coal plants and prolonging their lifespan. EPH acquired Vattenfall's lignite German power plants in 2016, among the top CO2 polluters in the EU. Between 2019 and 2022 the group acquired coal assets in Germany and France, gas-fired plants in the Netherlands, thermal power plants in Ireland, and biomass power plants in Italy. While such deals are often justified by the seller as efforts to reduce their own exposure to CO2 emissions, they routinely result in plants staying operational for longer. Companies should rather take responsibility for closing down their coal and biomass projects, while engaging in site rehabilitation.

Coal to biomass conversion: EPH operates a significant number of biomass-fired plants and is converting more coal-powered plants to biomass. The IPCC has said that biomass emits more carbon emissions than almost any other fuels. According to a recent report by Fern, EPH is projected to burn about 4.2 million tons of wood in its biomass and coal power plants in 2022 alone, corresponding to 6.2 million tons of CO2. Burning this amount of wood will, however, only produce around 4.5 GWh of electricity which is only 5.3% of Czechia’s estimated power consumption.

Converting coal plants to biomass is among EPH’s main “decarbonisation” strategies. One example is the reopening of the Gardanne plant in France in February 2022, after an investment of 300 million euros.


Impact on nature and environment

Forest destruction: Burning wood for energy not only exacerbates climate change through increased carbon emissions, it also drives forest destruction around the world. EPH holds all or a majority of the shares of 11 biomass plants in Czech Republic, UK, Italy, France and Slovakia, which burn wood chips or pellets from various logging companies in Central Europe. EPH claims to source wood from local and national suppliers, as well as from wood remainders of local forests, but its biomass supply chains lack transparency. Biomass power plants operated by EPH in the UK and Italy have been linked to unsustainable forestry practices. The huge demand for biomass has been boosting the growth of the European logging sector, dominated by companies such as Graanul Invest, the largest European pellet producer which is also involved in unsustainable forestry practices including logging in protected forests.

A 2022 Italian investigation found that about 1 million tons of wood is burned every year by EPH’s two biomass power plants in Calabria, Italy: the Crotone and Strongoli plants operated by EPH subsidiary Biomasse Crotone. Although detailed information is not made available by Biomasse Crotone, over half of the ships of wood chips that arrive in the harbour which serves these plants arrive from Tuscany, central Italy. Wood biomass producers in this region are routinely accused of causing biodiversity loss, soil degradation and preventing forest regeneration through irresponsible logging practices. In 2022, illegal logging was also reported near the EPH plants in Calabria and attributed to biomass sourcing, leading to a series of arrests and ongoing investigations.

In 2016, EPH acquired the Lynemouth power station in the UK, the second biggest biomass plant in the UK after Drax. Around 1.6 million tonnes of wood pellets are burned in Lynemouth a year. These wood pellets are supplied by Pinnacle Renewable Energy (that was recently acquired by Drax) and Enviva. Both of these wood pellet suppliers use unsustainable forestry practices, including clear-cutting forests, using whole trees to make pellets and damaging protected forest areas.


Impact on pandemics

Wood biomass is associated with high rates of deforestation as well as monocultures of various crops. There is a growing body of evidence that shows the connection between deforestation and an increased risk for disease outbreaks and pandemics. For example, monocultures like eucalyptus plantations reduce biodiversity leaving species like rats and mosquitoes, which are more likely to spread dangerous pathogens, to thrive. This biodiversity decline results in a loss of natural disease regulation and poses a risk for human, animal and environmental health.

Financiers
Institution type
Finance type
Year
News
BankTrack
Partners
Blog
External
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Environmental organizations have taken Křetínský to the parade: clean gas is a dirty lie

2021-11-01 | Denik Referendum
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Czech Republic vs. Pavel Tykač: it's time to level the score

2021-08-09 | Denik Referendum
Blog
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

UniCredit: a falling star

UniCredit loses its “best in class” credentials for participating in a billion euro financing operation for European coal addict EPH
2021-06-03 | Paris | Reclaim Finance
Blog
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Re:Common: “UniCredit breached its own coal policy and supports oil & gas expansion"

On the occasion of UniCredit’s 2021 Shareholders' Meeting, Re:Common reports important regressive developments in climate commitments taken by the Italian bank
2021-04-15 | Rome | ReCommon
Blog
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Fool’s Gold – €16bn for Europe’s biggest climate polluters

2019-05-21 | Berlin | Europe Beyond Coal
Blog
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Financing of coal industry expansion by top banks undermining Paris Agreement

2016-11-14 | Marrakech, Morocco | BankTrack, Friends of the Earth France, Market Forces, Rainforest Action Network, urgewald
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Czech buyers take next step in German coal sell-off

2016-08-23 | Client Earth
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Aidée par les banques, EPH, la société qui n’a pas peur de salir

2016-07-08 | l''Humanité
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Charbon: la décision énergétique de la Suède contestée par les écologistes

2016-07-07 | Francetvinfo.fr
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Le tchèque EPH, nouvelle cible des ONG anticharbon

2016-07-07 | Les Echos
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Banks urged to blacklist Czech coal guzzler EPH

2016-07-06 | Climatechangenews.com
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Charbon: des ONG appellent à cesser de financer la société tchèque EPH

2016-07-05 | Romandie.com
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Des ONG appellent au gel du financement d’EPH, 3ème plus grand énergéticien polluant de l’Europe

2016-07-05 | Agenceecofin.com
Blog
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Environmental organisations call on major European and US banks to stop bankrolling EPH

2016-07-05 | Nijmegen, the Netherlands | BankTrack, E3G, Friends of the Earth France, Sandbag, urgewald
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

EPH and the prospective Vattenfall deal

2016-05-10 | Heinrich Böll Stiftung
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

EPH’s takeover of Vattenfall’s lignite assets should ring alarm bells in Berlin and Stockholm

2016-05-09 | Energypost.eu
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

EPH eyes new build power stations, further acquisition and SME retail market

2016-02-18 | Utility Week
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

RWE sells Lynemouth power plant to EPH ahead of biomass conversion

2016-01-07 | The Telegraph UK
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

E.ON sells most of Italian business to Czech-based EPH

2015-01-12 | Reuters
BankTrack news BankTrack blog Partner news Partner blog

Czech firm EPH buys Eggborough power plant in Britain

2014-11-05 | Reuters
Resources
Documents
Links
2022-06-22 00:00:00

Presentation of the EPH Group

Company document
2022-06-22 00:00:00
2021-12-15 00:00:00

The Coal Companies Watchlist

How finance can accelerate the coal phase out
NGO document
2021-12-15 00:00:00 | Reclaim Finance
2022-01-25 00:00:00

Limited Utility

The European energy companies failing on net zero commitments
NGO document
2022-01-25 00:00:00 | Ember, Europe Beyond Coal
2022-09-08 00:00:00

A Carbon Bomb in the Heart of Europe

Will the EU biomass loophole give a lifeline to energy giant EPH’s coal power plants?
NGO document
2022-09-08 00:00:00 | Fern
2020-07-15 00:00:00

Fool's Gold

The financial institutions risking our renewable energy future with coal
BankTrack publication
2020-07-15 00:00:00 | Europe Beyond Coal, BankTrack, BlackRock’s Big Problem, Ember, Fundacja "Rozwój TAK - Odkrywki NIE”, Friends of the Earth Finland, Friends of the Earth France, Greenpeace, Reclaim Finance, Re:Common, ShareAction, Urgewald, 350 Japan
2019-05-21 00:00:00

Fool's Gold

The financial institutions bankrolling Europe’s most coal-dependent utilities
NGO document
2019-05-21 00:00:00 | Europe Beyond Coal
2018-11-20 00:00:00

Last Gasp - The coal companies making Europe sick

NGO document
2018-11-20 00:00:00 | Climate Action Network Europe
2017-08-31 00:00:00

EPH Annual report 2016

Annual report
2017-08-31 00:00:00 | EPH
2016-07-05 00:00:00

Letter from BankTrack et al. to Commerzbank on EPH financing

Correspondence
2016-07-05 00:00:00 | BankTrack et al.
2016-07-05 00:00:00

Letter from BankTrack et al. to Citibank on EPH financing

Correspondence
2016-07-05 00:00:00 | BankTrack et al.
2016-07-05 00:00:00

Letter from BankTrack et al. to HSBC on EPH financing

Correspondence
2016-07-05 00:00:00 | BankTrack et al.
2016-07-05 00:00:00

Letter from BankTrack et al. to ING on EPH financing

Correspondence
2016-07-05 00:00:00 | BankTrack et al.
2016-07-05 00:00:00

Letter from BankTrack et al. to JPMorgan Chase on EPH financing

Correspondence
2016-07-05 00:00:00 | BankTrack et al.
2016-07-05 00:00:00

Letter from BankTrack et al. to RBS on EPH financing

Correspondence
2016-07-05 00:00:00 | BankTrack et al.
2016-07-05 00:00:00

Letter from BankTrack et al. to Raiffeisen Bank on EPH financing

Correspondence
2016-07-05 00:00:00 | BankTrack et al.
2016-07-05 00:00:00

Letter from BankTrack et al. to Societe Generale on EPH financing

Correspondence
2016-07-05 00:00:00 | BankTrack et al.
2016-07-05 00:00:00

Letter from BankTrack et al. to Unicredit on EPH financing

Correspondence
2016-07-05 00:00:00 | BankTrack et al.
2016-06-30 00:00:00

EP Annual report 2015

Annual report
2016-06-30 00:00:00 | EP Energy
2016-05-31 00:00:00

Nice and clean? Does EPH meet Sweden’s and Vattenfall’s ethical standards?

NGO document
2016-05-31 00:00:00 | Greenpeace
2016-04-30 00:00:00

Who are EPH?

The Blank New Face of European Energy Companies?
NGO document
2016-04-30 00:00:00 | Sandbag
2016-04-26 00:00:00

Energy you want?

Vattenfall' s dark side
NGO document
2016-04-26 00:00:00 | urgewald
2015-03-01 00:00:00

EPH annual report 2014

Annual report
2015-03-01 00:00:00 | EPH

Daniel Kretínský , chairman EPH

Biography Daniel Kretínský (source www.4-traders.com)

Patrik Tkáč

Biography of Patrik Tkáč (source www.4-traders.com)

The “coal villain” of the European Union? Path dependence, profiteering and the role of the Energetický a průmyslový holding (EPH) company in the energy transition

The 2021 paper offers a detailed analysis of EPH’s investment strategy.

Sustainability Reports

EPH Group's yearly sustainability reports.

EPH Holding

Acquisitions and companies overview

Updates

2022

2022-04-22 00:00:00 | Coal and gas development still a possible future in Czech Republic thanks to companies like EPH

In the Czech Republic, national energy companies for decades have driven dependence on coal and are now promoting themselves as key players for a gas-based energy transition. However, these companies, including EPH, have been building coal-fired power plants and mines thanks to the financial support of banks and insurance groups. Read more here.

2021

2021-06-01 00:00:00 | UniCredit loses its “best in class” credentials by Reclaim Finance after financing EPH

In September 2020, UniCredit adopted a coal policy that ranked the best practise in Reclaim Finance’s Coal Policy Tool. But less than a year later, the bank lost its ‘best of class’ credentials for participating in a billion euro financing operation for European coal addict EPH. Read more here. 

2021-04-15 00:00:00 | Société Générale risks missing its divestment plans by financing EPH

Société Générale’s coal policy has not withstood the test of time, allowing the bank to continue financing key coal players like EPH, which operates coal-fired power stations burning 40 million tons of coal per year and generating 20% of the company's annual turnover. As per the bank’s coal policy, it should no longer be able to finance EPH since the company has no plan to exit coal by 2030. Read more here.

2016

2016-07-05 00:00:00 | Environmental organisations call on major European and American banks to stop bankrolling EPH

A group of environmental organisations has sent a series of open letters to major banks involved in granting over EUR three billion in loans to Czech energy company EPH since 2012. The letters call attention to the role of these banks in financing the expansion of EPH into Europe's old fossil fuel assets to the point where the company is set to become the third-most polluting utility on the continent, despite only having existed for seven years. Signatories of the letters comprise BankTrack, E3G, urgewald and Sandbag. Friends of the Earth France has signed the letter directed at Société Générale.

2016-04-18 00:00:00 | EPH and PPF Investments sign agreement for the acquisition of Vattenfall’s German lignite activities

A consortium of EPH and its financial partner PPF Investments Ltd., announced the signing of an agreement for the acquisition of lignite operations in Saxony and Brandenburg from Vattenfall AB (source: EPH).

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