State Secretary for Energy András Aradszki has said that international cooperation is essential for energy security and sustainable energy management, its primary aims being to eliminate the risk factors related to supply routes and to support energy trading. Mr. Aradszki was speaking at the Budapest Energy Charter Forum, which was jointly organised on 07 October 2015 by the Ministry of National Development and the Energy Charter Secretariat.

In his speech, the State Secretary drew attention to the fact that challenges related to energy supply go beyond the borders of Europe, and therefore continuous consultation is necessary. With increasing globalisation and interdependence between countries in terms of energy, every opportunity should be sought to achieve energy security, he said.

The Energy Union Strategy focuses on security of energy supply and on affordable energy prices. Mr. Aradszki said that these should be realised in parallel, through close cooperation and joint effort, as this is the best route to increasing European businesses’ competitiveness and rapidly overcoming energy supply challenges. The most important measure is therefore the development of thus far unrealised energy infrastructure, as this would ensure interconnectivity and diversification, and would also create competition for various external energy sources.

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The State Secretary expressed the hope that the Budapest Forum will also demonstrate Hungary’s openness to addressing energy challenges, and that through the event Hungary can contribute to the achievement of the goals of both the International Energy Charter and of parties with an interest in joint solutions.

In his opening speech at the forum, Mr. Urban Rusnák, General Secretary of the Energy Charter, outlined the role that his organisation has played in the realisation of the Energy Union and in dealing with challenges related to security of energy supply; he thanked Hungary for its active cooperation with the Energy Charter Secretariat in recent years.

The main objective of the International Energy Charter – adopted at the ministerial conference on 20–21 May 2015 – is to strengthen cooperation between its signatory member states in the field of energy. The International Energy Charter is available in several languages – including English, French and Spanish – on the organisation’s official website: http://international.energycharter.org/iec/what-is-the-charter/.

(Ministry for National Development)