Impact of EU allowances cost on the financial results of Polish power companies

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of the article is to estimate the impact of the EU Allowances price increase on the financial results and return on investment in the portfolio of shares of four listed power companies, i.e., Enea S.A., Energa S.A., PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna S.A., and TAURON Polska Energia S.A. Design/methodology/approach: Financial analysis of energy groups. Statistical analysis, a linear regression model with 6 independent variables and the dependent variable, i.e., the return on investment in the portfolio of shares of the analyzed companies. The studies cover the years 2016-2021. Findings: The results of the financial analysis show that the analyzed energy groups did not always could include increased operating costs in the price of energy sold in 2016-2021? The linear regression analysis did not indicate that the decrease in the profitability of investments in the shares of the surveyed companies can be explained by the increase in the prices of EU Allowances. Research limitation/implications: The inability to determine the unequivocal impact of the EU Allowances price increase on the financial results and share prices of the considered companies can be explained by the number of operating segments in the energy groups, the outbreak of the COVID pandemic and negative GDP in 2020, and the "upward rebound" of the economy after the pandemic and high GDP in 2021. Practical implications: The analysis is useful for shareholders of electricity companies and politicians who create regulations concerning the Polish energy policy. The results of the study are useful to all stakeholders of electricity companies. Social influence: The high costs of EU Allowances affect electricity prices for the Polish society and prove very high CO2 emissions when producing electricity in Poland. Originality/value: The conducted financial analysis and regression analysis are one of the first attempts to indicate the impact of the increase in the cost of CO2 emission allowances on the financial results and share prices of Polish energy companies. The article contributes to reducing the research gap existing in Polish literature in this area. Keywords: power companies, EU Emissions Trading System, EU Allowances (EUA), regression analysis. Category of the paper: research paper.