Court makes Czech Coal resume supply to power plant

PRAGUE, June 25 (Reuters) - A court has ordered miner Czech Coal, which had halted shipments to power producer Elektrarny Opatovice on June 7, to resume deliveries of the fuel.

Elektrarny Opatovice, owned by energy investment group EPH, said on Monday it had won an injunction from the regional court at Usti nad Labem ordering Czech Coal to restart deliveries.

Czech Coal, controlled by businessman Pavel Tykac, has long been locked in pricing disputes with customers that have threatened to halt production at several large power stations.

"We consider this to be a logical confirmation that the interruption of supplies was against the law," Opatovice, which runs a 360 megawatt power station, said in a statement on the court decision.

A spokeswoman for Czech Coal said it would respect the court injunction and consider further steps.

Opatovice said earlier this month Czech Coal's aim was to push, in a disproportionate manner, for higher future coal prices.

EPH and Czech Coal are potential rivals in bidding for the 1,000-megawatt power station at Pocerady and the 800-megawatt Chvaletice plant that may be sold by the region's dominant electricity firm CEZ.

CEZ said last month it may sell them because of its rifts with Czech Coal over future coal prices.

Lignite is a major fuel source for the Czech power industry. (Reporting by Jan Lopatka; Editing by Anthony Barker)