PRAGUE, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Dominant Czech electricity producer CEZ <CEZPsp.PR> said on Wednesday it plans to sell power directly to customers in other markets in the region, in an attempt to offset its eroding market share at home.
Chief Commercial Director Alan Svoboda told a news conference that CEZ will open sales centres in Poland and Slovakia next year. It will then follow in 2008 with sales centres in Hungary, Austria and Germany.
CEZ is Europe's second-largest electricity exporter, but does not sell directly to retail customers outside its home market.
"The expected loss of market share for CEZ on the domestic market for electricity is the logical outcome of market liberalisation in the Czech Republic and proves there is a well functioning market environment," he said.
The firm expects its market share to fall to 53.4 percent by the end of this year, from 56.2 percent in 2005 and 57 percent in 2004. Czech authorities have been liberalising the local market in stages for several years.
"We want to compensate by opening in new markets and offsetting the natural loss of market share in the Czech Republic," he added.
Last week CEZ reported a weaker-than-expected 51 percent rise in third-quarter net profit.
The Czech-based company's net profit, excluding minority interests, rose to 5.22 billion crowns ($238.5 million) for July-September, but lagged the average analyst forecast of 5.59 billion crowns.
CEZ, the European Union member's most profitable company, has been on the acquisition trail in central and eastern Europe, buying power generation plants and distribution assets in Poland, Bulgaria and Romania.
Svoboda repeated earlier company forecasts that he expects average electricity prices in the Czech Republic to rise by a maximum of 7 to 8 percent next year.
((Reporting by Jan Korselt, Writing by Alan Crosby; prague.newsroom@reuters.com; Reuters Messaging: alan.crosby.reuters.com@reuters.net; +420 224 190 477))
For main central European company news, double click on [.CEE] E.Europe hot stocks [HOT-EEU] Main E.Europe news [TOP/EAST] Related stories on [HU] [PL] [CZ] [EEU-STX] [EEU-RES] [EEU-E] For real-time index quotes, double click in brackets: Warsaw WIG20 <.WIG20> Budapest BUX <.BUX> Prague PX <.PX>
Keywords: ENERGY CZECH CEZ