How Will the Supervisory Board Decide? ŠKO-ENERGO Heating Plant Modernisation Nears Another Milestone

The story surrounding the modernisation of the heating plant that supplies energy to ŠKODA Auto, the Czech Republic’s largest car manufacturer, is entering a new phase.

We have previously reported on the case here. The RAILTARGET editorial team continues to follow this tender closely, as it represents an important indicator of broader market developments. The deployment of wagon tippler technology will become increasingly common in the future, and its synchronisation with freight rail transport will be essential.

This Tuesday, the Supervisory Board of ŠKO-ENERGO is scheduled to meet to evaluate the third tender for the so-called commercial package OB4 – wagon tippler. This tippler is expected to ensure the smooth supply of wood chips to the power plant, transported to the site by rail. The incoming freight wagons will be unloaded using the tippler that is currently being tendered.

Let us recall that the previous two tenders were cancelled, each time with its own, not always convincing, justification. RAILTARGET previously pointed out, for example, the personnel links between one of the potential suppliers, TESYCO GROUP, and ŠKO-ENERGO procurator Milan Poddaný.

According to internal information obtained by the editorial team, ŠKO-ENERGO has been experiencing internal disagreements regarding the course and evaluation of the tenders. This has reportedly led to at least one employee involved in the evaluation process not continuing with the company next year.

According to our sources, the Supervisory Board of ŠKO-ENERGO, which has the final say in approving the tender, is expected to be recommended to approve a bid that is neither the most financially advantageous nor the strongest in terms of technical solutions.

RAILTARGET directly asked ŠKO-ENERGO managing director Tomáš Kubín about these aspects of the tender. We also requested a statement regarding information that the procurement department of ŠKO-ENERGO (and purchaser Ing. Petr Chromý) should not be evaluating the OB4 – tippler contract because of a risk of influencing the result due to the connections of procurator Milan Poddaný. We further asked whether, in such a situation, it would be appropriate to transfer the decision to the procurement department of the parent company ŠKODA Auto or to the Volkswagen Group’s procurement division.

Managing director Kubín replied that, since the tender for package OB4 is still ongoing, he would not comment or respond to the matter.

The editorial team also contacted the ŠKO-ENERGO Supervisory Board with questions about whether it has access to all bids for the tippler project and whether it is therefore able to compare them. No response was received before the publication deadline.

Let us also recall that the tippler is intended to supply the power plant with a massive amount of wood chips, up to 600,000 tonnes per year. This makes the choice of technology absolutely crucial, as any technical problems could cause a breakdown in operations. A further negative aspect is that the industrial siding within the ŠKODA complex is far from ideal, and trains carrying wood chips will require complex manoeuvring.