V4 leaders call on EU to diversify energy sources

Leaders from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia called for a diverse range of power sources in the EU, suggesting there should be “no discrimination” on the kinds of […]

Leaders from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia called for a diverse range of power sources in the EU, suggesting there should be “no discrimination” on the kinds of energy used.

They showed their support for nuclear energy and said they expect the EU to help Central Europe increase its nuclear power capacity.

The Prime Ministers of the Visegrad Group (V4) countries (pictured) made the call at a press conference following a meeting in Budapest this week for the first time since Hungary took over the V4 Presidency.

Named after the Hungarian town of Visegrad where they first met, the Group was established in 1991 following a decision of the members to work together on a number of issues.

Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban said every nation “has the right to produce energy from the sources available” and also called for the EU to reconsider subsidies for energy investments by taking into account every nation’s power generating capacities.

The Prime Ministers also agreed on supporting countries planning to begin shale gas extraction and is working towards establishing a regional gas market.

Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico noted a gas pipeline connecting Hungary and Slovakia would go into operation in January 2015 to allow the two nations to share capacities.

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