Slovak PM bans heating price growth ahead of euro

(BRATISLAVA) - Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has banned the state-run Bratislava heating company from increasing heating prices in a bid to curb inflation before planned euro adoption on January 1, 2009, the daily Pravda reported on Friday.

Company spokeswoman Jarmila Galandakova would not confirm Fico's decision but said there might be some statement about the situation next week.

According to the daily, the Bratislava heating company cancelled a 28 percent price increase effective as of September in two districts of Bratislava after Fico warned he would sack the company's officials -- nominees of his ruling party Smer -- if they pushed for the price growth.

The heating company said the price increase was due to rising prices of gas supplied by the country's dominant gas distributor SPP.

Fico has attacked SPP several times for its request to raise gas prices because of high oil prices on global markets. He opposed SPP's last request to raise gas prices by 19.8 percent from November 3.

The prime minister even said in early September that the state was ready to return the purchase price that France's Gaz de France and Germany's E.ON -- now E.ON Ruhrgas -- paid for a 49 percent stake in SPP and managerial control over the company in 2002.