Czech PM says govt to meet Wednesday on CEZ sale

...quoted on Friday as saying.

The government has been mulling selling part of the state stake in CEZ, central Europe's largest power company, to help cover a 30 billion crown ($1.39 billion) hole in the budget. It is estimated such a sale would include some 7 percent of CEZ.

Topolanek told the business daily Hospodarske Noviny in an interview that the government has several points concerning CEZ, 68 percent state held, on its agenda.

"With regard to the sale of CEZ shares because of a gap in funding for the fund for transport insfrastructure, we (the government) will meet next week," he said.

"This will also include other points, such as how CEZ's dividend policy could be used to help realise pension reforms."

On Thursday CEZ reported a full year 2006 net profit, excluding minority interests, of 27.7 billion crowns, and raised its full-year outlook for 2007 net profit before minority interests by 1.1 billion crowns to 35.1 billion.

The firm has a standing dividend policy of paying 40-50 percent of the net profit to shareholders. Topolanek did not say what changes to the dividend policy, if any, the government would consider.

[PRAGUE/Reuters/Finance.cz]