Central Europe

Energy is considered by the countries of Central Europe to be one of the region’s most pressing security concerns. The countries of the region – Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia and Slovenia – all recognise that they share common energy challenges. These include safeguarding supply security and lower consumer prices, the need to support continued integration of the market, and ensuring compliance with climate change commitments. However, they also recognise that despite developing extensive policy responses over the past 10-15 years, they still have much more to do. Furthermore, although collaboration is actively encouraged as a way to address these common challenges, bespoke national responses which take into account the historical, societal, political and economic circumstances of each state are also needed. These national positions can create intra-regional challenges, as the region’s states pursue diverse approaches to addressing energy insecurity. As the EU, via the Energy Union, strives to speed up integration and better coordinate European responses to common energy challenges, the diversity of the Central European region could potentially place limitations on its success