E-TOLLS

Austrian company Kapsch launched its electronic toll collection system in the Czech Republic Jan. 1. Trucks and buses weighing more than 12 metric tons (13 short tons) have to pay tolls on 970 kilometers of Czech roads. The average rate is 4.05 Kč per kilometer (19 U.S. cents per mile). More than 700,000 Kč was collected on the first day, Kapsch Czech Republic CEO Karel Feix said.

POWER

Czech power giant ČEZ is one of four groups shortlisted to modernize the energy sector in Kosovo, Kosovo's Energy and Mining Ministry announced Dec. 29. The main project of modernization is a power plant with a capacity around 2,000 megawatts. The modernization would cost nearly $3 billion and should be completed by 2012. Other shortlisted bidders include Germany's RWE Power AG.

PLANES

Irish-owned company CzechAircraft will take over Czech plane maker Moravan-Aeroplanes this month, a Moravan-Aeroplanes spokesman told the Czech News Agency Dec. 28. CzechAircraft has paid more than 50 million Kč to the creditors of Moravan-Aeroplanes and its former parent Moravan. The Zlín-based Moravan-Aeroplanes declared bankruptcy in 2004. The company now employs about 170 people.

PERMITS

Homebuilders will no longer have to apply for building permits to construct houses that are smaller than 150 square meters (1,600 square feet) and shorter than four stories, thanks to a new building law that took effect Jan. 1, the daily Hospodářské noviny reported. But a new notification requirement makes building permits more complicated and means that owners must obtain approval from neighbors for construction projects.

PUBLISHER

Dow Jones sold its 23.5 percent stake in Czech publisher Economia to majority owner Verlagsgruppe Handelsblatt for nearly $20 million, the company announced Dec. 29. Economia publishes economic and trade magazines including Hospodářské noviny. Dow Jones will use the proceeds to pay down debt and reduce interest expenses.

GDP

Czech gross domestic product (GDP) could reach the European Union average by 2013, according to a study by the French Centre for International Studies and Research (CERI) released Jan. 1. The study pointed to the Czech foreign trade surplus and continuous significant growth as reasons for hope. However, it warned about delayed budget reforms as potential hurdles to GDP growth.

CONFIDENCE

Overall confidence in the economy reached its highest level ever at the end of 2006, the Czech Statistical Office said Dec. 29. The figure increased 1.4 points in November and 6.3 points from the end of 2005. More than half of respondents assessed the economy as good, nearly 40 percent as satisfactory and 6.2 percent as bad.

RESTROOMS

The Czech Retail Inspection said it is legal for restaurants and rest stops to charge for using the toilet and put the amount on the bill, the daily Právo reported Jan. 2. Consumer groups have argued that the charge requires restaurants to have a separate business permit for the practice.