Heat market and price setting in the district heating sector

Various aspects of heat market and the setting of prices in the district heating sectors of Slovakia are discussed. Approximately 38 percent of the heat supply in DH municipal sector represents heat for households. It is observed that about 71.3 percent of DH boilers use natural gas as a fuel, 16.4 percent use coal, 6.7 percent heating oil and 5.6 percent other types of fuel. Since January 1998 the regulation of heat prices became the the responsibility of the district authorities, which can regulate prices by setting maximum prices.