The methodology approved by ANACOM determines that the calculation of CLSU is based on the calculation of direct net costs, with an impact which may be directly measured in USP accounts, and indirect benefits, as regards benefits, sometimes intangible ones, which accrue to the USP due to that very status.
The determination of CLSU is based on costs which the USP would avoid and on revenues it would lose if, as a result of not having to meet US obligations, it would not be required to provide the service in unprofitable geographical areas, and in profitable areas, it would not be required to provide the service to unprofitable customers or to provide the service in conditions other than standard commercial ones.
USP costs and assets are valued at historic costs, which are presented in the company’s financial statements. CLSU also comprise a remuneration instalment concerning the cost of capital.
As such, data used to calculate CLSU in each year correspond to a calendar year period, on the basis of MEO’s cost accounting system (CAS), which is mostly fed by the company’s financial statements. The calculation of CLSU is based also on the company’s operational and financial indicators.
The determination of CLSU for 2014 must take place on the basis of the methodology defined by ANACOM, which has also been used to calculate CLSU from 2007 to 2013. However, given that in 2014 MEO provided the US concerning the period preceding the tender designation of a new USP for only a part of that year, the methodology for calculation of CLSU must be adapted, given that the latter assumes the calculation of CLSU on a year-on-year basis.
In this scope, it must be recalled that US components that are relevant for the calculation of CLSU concern the provision of connection to a public communications network at a fixed location and of publicly available telephone services (FTS) as well as the provision of public pay-phones (PPP). For this reason, the methodology must be adapted so that MEO is able to present CLSU estimates for the period from 01.01.2014 to 31.05.2014, as far as the first component is concerned, and for the period from 01.01.2014 to 08.04.2014, as far as the provision of public pay-phones is concerned.
The methodology approved by ANACOM integrates the calculation of net costs associated to the component of provision of connection to the public telephone network at a fixed location and access to publicly available services. In this component, costs related to unprofitable areas and unprofitable customers are calculated: (i) unprofitable areas correspond to MDF where unprofitable customers are prevalent, making them broadly non-profitable - MEO determines CLSU for these areas by applying an “area model”; and (ii) unprofitable customers correspond to customers who are broadly non-profitable, but who live in profitable areas - MEO determines CLSU for these customers by applying a “customer model”. It should be noted that the methodology integrates in this component, in the “area model” scope, the calculation of CLSU for public pay-phones in unprofitable areas in order to avoid the double counting of such costs.
A specific methodology has been established for net costs related to retired persons and pensioners, as well as for unprofitable public pay-phones in profitable areas - for these items MEO applies a “public pay-phone model”. Lastly, indirect benefits are also calculated, which are subtracted from overall net costs associated to retired persons and pensioners, unprofitable areas, unprofitable customers living in profitable areas and unprofitable public pay-phones in profitable areas.
In the light of the above, it is clear that the CLSU calculation methodology must be adapted for the purpose of the determination of CLSU for 2014, bearing in mind that MEO provided the service for part of the year only, and taking also into consideration the different dates on which USP designated by tender stated operation, which requires that FTS data are isolated from data concerning the public pay-phones component.
