PRAGUE: The Czech Republic has begun importing gas from Algeria to reduce its reliance on Russian supplies amid the ongoing war in Ukraine, the CEZ power group said on Thursday.
The gas, transported through pipelines in Tunisia and Italy, will meet about two percent of the country’s gas consumption, which is equivalent to the needs of 100,000 households, according to CEZ spokesman Roman Gazdik. The imports, negotiated with Algeria’s state-owned Sonatrach company, commenced in October.
CEZ chief executive Daniel Benes stated, “We have taken another step to boost our energy security.”
As a strong supporter of Ukraine, Prague is also sourcing gas from Germany, Norway, and a liquefied natural gas terminal in the Netherlands. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the Czech Republic, an EU and NATO member with a population of 10.9 million, has been working to reduce its dependency on Russian oil and gas.
In 2023, Czech gas consumption reached 6.76 billion cubic meters, marking a 10.4 percent decrease from 2022, largely due to government-promoted energy savings following the invasion.
