Poland wants to be energy hub of Central Europe, PM says

Poland's aim is to become an energy hub and energy security provider for Central Europe, Mateusz Morawiecki, the Polish prime minister, has said.

On Wednesday, Morawiecki took part in a conference in Warsaw on Polish-Ukrainian partnership in making the future energy system secure, attended by representatives of governments and leading energy companies from both countries.

"Our plan is to become an energy hub, a gas hub in particular, for Central Europe," he told the conference.

Morawiecki said that the Polish government's plan is based on interconnectors and gas pipelines that have already been built, as well as on the country's future investments in building modern nuclear energy.

In his opinion, the plan may mean Poland will be a provider of regional energy security, which will also strengthen its political position and status in the whole of Central Europe.

Morawiecki mentioned that Poland has already invested in a floating terminal for receiving, storing and regasifying liquefied natural gas (LNG) and is expanding the crude oil handling Naftoport in Gdansk on the Baltic coast.

"This infrastructure will be able to be used in the future by recipients from Poland, but also our partners from Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and... Hungary," he said.

He also added that Poland and the Czech Republic are planning to return to a joint project of building the Stork II gas interconnector and other cross-border energy bridges between the two countries.

According to Morawiecki, energy cooperation with Ukraine and neighbouring countries "is also an element of Poland's national interest."

"We are already invited to joint mining and exploration projects in Ukraine. Of course, there must be peace there, but such projects are possible. The talks concern various areas, including gas exploration in Western Ukraine," he said.