Stuttgart (dpa/lsw) - Despite fierce criticism of the sale of critical infrastructure, Baden-Württemberg's green head of government, Winfried Kretschmann, believes a partial privatization of the transmission system operator TransnetBW is necessary. As a shareholder of the parent company EnBW, he cannot intervene in the operative business. "I'm not entitled to that. The company has to decide for itself," said Kretschmann on Tuesday in Stuttgart. It is also only about a minority stake of 49.9 percent. It is crucial that the electricity highways, with which wind energy is to be transported from the north to the south, are now being built quickly. This is only possible with outside capital. "What's the alternative? These companies have to invest billions." The alternative would be a capital injection from the owners. "Where is the money supposed to come from?"
Kretschmann was convinced that the award would be made in such a way "that it would lead to general acceptance". He promised: "You can be sure: the Chinese will not get it. Recently, there had been heated discussions in the federal government about Chinese companies entering the Port of Hamburg and the chip manufacturer Elmos.
The plans for a partial sale of TransnetBW contradict the green federal election program. It says: "Since power transmission networks represent natural monopolies and critical infrastructure, we want to strengthen public influence on them."
The third largest German utility, EnBW, has been largely publicly owned since 2011. The state of Baden-Württemberg holds almost 47 percent of the group and the OEW merger of nine Upper Swabian districts also owns almost 47 percent. The company had recently announced that it wanted to remain the majority owner of TransnetBW. "The planned transaction does not affect the operational work of TransnetBW and has no impact on the security of supply," said a spokesman.
