Changing energy policies in Central Europe Dr. László Vasa Deputy director general for research Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade

Core issues Dependence on Russia (oil, natural gas, supply routes, nuclear Natoinal preferences (competitiveness – lower prices) Social dimension (utility prices) Energy Union Climate change

Russia Extreme dependence (almost 100 percent of oil, and percent of natural gas coming from RU) Infrastructure: Soviet-era pipelines, few new constructions No alternative source in the short- and mid-term Looking for new sources: LNG (Australia, USA, Central Asia), but infrastructural developments are needed first Nuclear developments: the relationship is here to stay Normal, businesslike relations

National preferences Energy policy shall remain with the national governments More cooperation is beneficial, but regulation shall remain local Competitiveness – Lower prices – Reliable service – Good infrastructure – We are competing with each other Nat’l governments should have the chance to design an energy mix for the benefit of the country

Social dimensions Many residential consumers cannot afford high prices Governments are eager to help them for votes Many countries tried to bring down prices – supportive global climate (dropping oil prices) Highly political – We don’t want Brussels to interfere with this (Energy Union)

Energy Union Strong resistance to it: – Natoinal security – Competitiveness – Social dimension We can also benefit – importing cheaper electricity (intra-day and day ahead markets) – Reinforce supply routes (interconnectors – with EU help) Delicate issue, we consider it as a political project

Climate change Significant issue (Hungarian President János Áder’s number one priority) We have exess ETS quotas (it was based on the 1990 values, but heavy industry in CEE collapsed since than) Renewables: put them on a market basis, cut subsidies Energy efficiency – ordinary people could save lot of money De-carbonization: competitiveness

Thank you for your attention.