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Prague, Sep 13 (IANS) The Czech government approved a price cap for electricity and gas after an extraordinary meeting.
According to Prime Minister Petr Fiala, households and businesses will pay a maximum of six Czech crowns (25 U.S. dollar cents) per kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity, and a maximum of three crowns per kWh of gas, both of which include value-added tax.
Finance Minister Zbynek Stanjura put the impact on the state's budget at an estimated 130 billion crowns. These costs could be covered by revenues from state-owned companies, a newly proposed windfall profit tax and revenues from emission allowances, he said on Monday evening.
The Minister added that the new windfall profit tax discussed on Monday by the government could cover up to 70 billion crowns alone by next year. However, the implementation of this tax must take into account a similar tax discussed at the European Union level, which the European Commission is expected to present this week, Xinhua news agency reported.
Inflation in the country finally slowed down after 13 months to a year-on-year rate of 17.2 per cent in August, according to figures published by the Czech Statistical Office on Monday. But it is still well above the Czech National Bank's tolerance band. Electricity prices rose by 34.6 per cent, and gas by 61.4 per cent.
On September 3, an estimated 70,000 people descended on Wenceslas Square in Prague to protest against rising energy prices and called for the mitigation of the impact of the energy crisis. (1$ 24.18 Czech crowns)
--IANS
int/khz/
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