The Energy Charter Secretariat and the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic together with the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe held a Bratislava Energy Charter Forum on 10 October 2014.
The Forum came as a follow-up activity to the cooperation between the Energy Charter and the OSCE launched with an expert workshop on Sharing Best Practices to Protect Electricity Networks held on 2 July this year in Vienna.
Discussions focused on the topic of "Securing Energy Supply: How to Better Protect Energy Networks from Disruptions" and were organised in three sessions revolving around the issues of energy networks protection from natural disasters, the human factor in the protection of energy infrastructure, and the role and importance of international cooperation.
The Forum provided a unique opportunity for policy makers, international organisations, business sector representatives and other stakeholders to share information and exchange best practices concerning critical energy infrastructure. The aim was to analyse various aspects of international cooperation in mitigating the risks emanating from natural disasters and human errors in order to strengthen the security and stability of energy infrastructure.
The Forum took place at the Historical Building of the National Council of the Slovak Republic, Župné námestie 1, Bratislava, Slovak Republic.
Presentations
Welcome
Amb. Oľga Algayerová
Permanent Representative of the Slovak Republic to International Organisations in Vienna
Opening Statements
Pavol Pavlis
Minister of Economy of the Slovak Republic
Amb. Urban Rusnák
Secretary General, Energy Charter Secretariat
Session I: Protecting Energy Networks from Natural Disasters
Chair
Dr. Halil Yurdakul Yigitgüden, Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities
Speakers
Vladyslav Ramazanov
Lead Specialist, Department of Diversification of Sources of Oil and Gas Supply, Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry of Ukraine
Mario d'Agostini
Head of Secretariat Electricity Unit, State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, Switzerland
Dr. Nadejda Komendantova
Senior Research Scholar, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)
Amb. Lamberto Zannier
Secretary General, OSCE
Concluding Remarks
Discussion
Session II: The Human Factor in the Protection of Energy Infrastructure
Chair
Amb. Pavol Hamžík
Ambassador-at-Large for Energy Security, Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic
Speakers
Marián Nicz
Senior Expert, Ministry of Economy of the Slovak Republic
František Pecho
Executive Director, Slovak Electricity Transmission System (SEPS)
Martin Bílek
Security Director, Czech Electricity Transmission System (CEPS)
Ivan Beneš
Consultant, VP, Czech National Committee for Disaster Relief Representative
Discussion
Session III: The Role and Importance of International Cooperation
Chair
Mr. Kanat Botbaev, Expert, Energy Charter Secretariat
Speakers
Eric Andréini
Executive Manager, European Affairs Division, RTE France / Member of GO15
Kurt Misak
Head of Security of Supply Department, Austrian Power Grid AG / Member of ENTSO-E
Rajesh Nair
Head of Architecture and Cyber Security team, Swiss Grid Ltd
Anton Kolisnyk
Head of Strategic Planning Division, PJSC UKRTRANSGAZ
Discussion
Closing remarks
Amb. Urban Rusnák
Secretary General, Energy Charter Secretariat