BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 6. Infrastructure needs to be developed to supply gas to landlocked EU states , Director of the Department of Strategy and International Cooperation in Energy at the Czech Republic's Ministry of Industry and Trade Petr Binhack said during today's panel discussion themed "Gas Dialogue: The Role of Gas Supply During the Energy Crisis" at the 29th Baku Energy Forum in Azerbaijan, Trend reports.
"The Czech Republic has been actively negotiating alternative routes for some time. We are in touch with our German colleagues and are very grateful for the investments and efforts aimed at creating infrastructure for LNG. This is not a new topic; it was discussed at the European level 10 years ago. Now we have LNG terminals on the Baltic and North Sea coasts, which is a very positive step.
We need to develop infrastructure that will deliver gas from the coast to inland member countries, such as the Czech Republic. This is another redirection of gas flows in Europe: not from east to west, not from north to south, but from west to east. This is a significant change, and we see that there are bottlenecks that need to be addressed," the official explained.
Binhack emphasized that the European Commission is also considering proposals within the framework of the Repower EU initiative, aimed not only at improving energy efficiency and increasing the use of renewable energy sources, including biomethane and green hydrogen, but also at enhancing the reliability of energy supply through cooperation among EU countries, which is extremely important for the region's future.
To note, over 600 delegates are participating in the forum, which began on June 5, representing a diverse range of countries including Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, China, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Georgia, Hungary, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Monaco, the Netherlands, Norway, UAE, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, the UK, the US, and Uzbekistan. This year's forum boasts a record number of speakers, totaling 81.
The Forum's agenda will address energy issues of significance for Azerbaijan and the broader Caspian region, focusing primarily on considerations and financing related to energy security, energy transition, and green energy projects.
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