Cash Management in Energy Companies

Abstract

The paper presents issues surrounding the management of free cash assets in listed energy companies. The reasons for keeping free cash presented in relevant literature, i.e. transactional, prudential and speculative, do not exhaust the list of reasons behind companies’ decisions. The environment in which they operate encourages companies to use free cash to carry out current purchase transactions and to take advantage of price discounts for purchases settled with cash or for accelerated payment for deliveries in relation to contractual payment terms. Companies can pursue different cash management strategies as part of their financial strategy. Conservative, moderate and aggressive strategies depend on their trade policy. The development of the financial market creates ample opportunities to engage free cash in various financial instruments. The company's choice of instruments is mostly determined by the risk of loss of part of the invested funds, without ignoring the income from these instruments and their management. Research carried out in energy companies indicates that Polish energy companies have a large cash surplus in relation to their current assets and revenues. This surplus is higher than in global listed energy companies.