Stork II gas pipeline. The Czechs return to the project after a 4-year break

According to earlier information from the Polish Ministry of Climate and Environment, the Stork II project involved the construction of a new gas connection between Poland and Czechs with a capacity of 5 billion cubic meters. gas that could be used for LNG deliveries via Poland to the Czech Republic.

The plans were canceled in 2019, but in the spring of last year, Prime Minister Fiala, after meeting Prime Minister Morawiecki in Warsaw, declared his will to return to the topic of building Stork II. He also informed that he proposed, on behalf of the Czech Republic, to tighten cooperation with Poland as regards the capacity of the LNG terminals that Poland plans to build and expressed his will to purchase part of the gas within these new terminals. In February this year Prime Minister Fiala, in response to Prime Minister Morawiecki’s letter, expressed his readiness to assess the possible participation of the Czech side in the floating LNG terminal (FSRU) project in the Gulf of Gdańsk, which is to start operating in 2026. Subsequently, the issue of the terminal and the return to investment in the Stork II gas pipeline was raised at the ministerial level. On Thursday, Polish-Czech intergovernmental consultations were held in Katowice with the participation of ministers of both governments, chaired by Prime Ministers Morawiecki and Petr Fiala. At the press conference after the meeting, the Czech Prime Minister was asked, among others, for the construction of the Stork II gas pipeline.

– Our teams are working to ensure that the Stork II gas pipeline is opened by 2026. This is a strategic project for us and the specific amounts are not important, but the method of financing this project. We are prepared to finance it from our national budget. We are looking for different methods of financing, while work on the preparation of this gas pipeline is still ongoing – replied Petr Fiala. As he emphasized, it is extremely important for his country to diversify the routes through which gas flows to the Czech Republic.

– The launch of this gas pipeline will also mean for us the provision of gas stocks in Polish terminals, which will contribute to greater energy security in our part of Europe – added Fiala.

As announced on Thursday by the Polish Ministry of Climate and Environment, the head of the ministry Anna Moscow during a meeting with the Czech Minister of Industry and Trade, Jozef Sikela in Katowice, she emphasized that the current geopolitical situation requires solidarity and a coherent approach of all EU countries to ensuring the continuity of energy supplies and energy stability. “We support all initiatives that strengthen the energy solidarity of our region. In this context, Poland positively regards the resumption and implementation of new infrastructure projects in the field of gas, including the Stork gas connection and the FSRU regasification terminal in Gdańsk, which, however, requires the involvement of all stakeholders and the financial support of the European Commission,” said Minister Moscow, quoted in the communiqué.