East Europe's Powerhouse Flees Balkan Woes for Western Calm

The largest power producer in the post-Communist European Union is scaling back its troubled Balkan operations to expand in the west.

After spending hundreds of millions of dollars in southeastern Europe last decade, CEZ AS is changing tack following too many fights with local lawmakers and regulators. The Prague-based utility is in talks to sell coal plants and a distribution business in Bulgaria. In western Europe, the company is snapping up wind farms, heating facilities and other assets to compete with giants from EON SE to Engie SA.