EFT DENIES REPORT OF OHR SPECIAL AUDITOR.

(From ONASA News Agency)

SARAJEVO, March 1 (ONASA) - Executive Director of the Energy Financing Team (EFT) company from London Svetislav Bulatovic and member of EFT Steering Board Vuk Hamovic on Saturday denied allegations from the report of the special auditor on the Republika Srpska Elektroprivreda.

According to the report, all excess production is sold abroad to EFT, a London-based company, often at bellow market, cost and tariff prices. Through tender manipulation EFT, as the only "valid" bidder, won the tender on the energy exchange contract for the RS. This contract enables EFT to totally control the transmission network throughout the RS. "The RS Elektroprivreda received no additional consideration for providing this contract. As a result EFT reaped windfall profits of 40% in 2002 on the resale of the RS Elektroprivreda electricity, which is astronomical when compared to more typical profits from energy trading of 1-5 percent," Principal Deputy High Representative Donald Hays said.

He added that the special audits recommended that Financial Police and UK Serious Fraud Office investigate transactions and relationship with EFT.

"The EFT realized the purchase of the power form Elektroprivreda in accordance with the valid regulations in the European Union (EU), BiH and the RS, so it bought 916,980 MWh of power from the RS last year, which are worth some 22 million euro. So far, it has received only 332,000 MWh," Bulatovic told reporters in Sarajevo.

He added that the price at which the EFT bough the power was 26.65 euro per MWh, which was higher than the prices of all other bidders, and higher than those at the stock exchange and in the region.

"International tenders preceded the purchase of the power. A total of 27 companies took tender documentation, and only four submitted offers by the foreseen deadline. The bids were opened by a special commission, in the presence of the bidders, and the price offered by the EFT was higher than all other offers, and it also accepted to make the payment in advance," Bulatovic said.