The Czech Republic: Bringing the Rest Closer to the West?
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| Year of publication | 2013 |
| Type | Chapter of a book |
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| Description | The need for the physical integration of EU markets via the North South Gas Corridor (NSGC or NSI), today constitutes a flagship initiative of the Visegrad Group (V4) and its closest neighbours. The idea to build the gas corridor has arisen from both the geographical proximity of these countries and the similarity of the problems they face, including limited interconnections, poor market liquidity, and the dominance of Russian supplies. It is fair to say that the V4 was able to learn a lesson from the 2009 Russia–Ukraine gas crisis. All of the Visegrad members, which at the time had around 75% dependence on both supplies and transport routes from the east, were, to various degrees, hit by the temporary interruption of supplies. This was thus illustrative, not only of how diversification in Central Europe is needed but also of how regional solidarity is necessary to efficiently manage the risk of sudden cuts in the future. It is worth remembering that during the crisis the Czech Republic established reverse flow to Slovakia, while Hungary made emergency supplies from its stockpiles available to the Western Balkans. This report tackles the positions and interests of the countries involved. It was prepared after an international roundtable held in March 2013 in Warsaw as the second part of the results of a study conducted within the framework of “North South Gas Corridor and the V4 Energy Security” Research Project No. 21220356, financed by the International Visegrad Fund. This report presents in six chapters brief country perspectives for all of the Visegrad Group countries as well as Croatia and Romania, with a focus on gas structures, priorities and policies. The very first and very last chapters, in turn, offer conclusions and, what we find to be a crucial part, recommendations for decision makers from all of the Central European countries. |
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