EUROPEAN Commission President-elect Jean-Claude Juncker officially proposed that Slovak diplomat Maroš Šefčovič become the EC’s vice-president for energy union on October 15, the TASR newswire reported.
Šefčovič was originally proposed to oversee the transport and space agenda which should now be taken up by Slovenian candidate Violeta Bulc. In his first reaction to the proposed appointment, Šefčovič said he will be primarily in charge of creating an energy union.
“The current crisis between the EU and Russia concerning gas supplies shows that this problem is becoming highly important and strategic,” Šefčovič said, as quoted by TASR.
He added that the incoming top EU leaders, including Juncker and European Council President Donald Tusk, wish for the completion of an energy union that will work more efficiently than the current cooperation in this sphere.
Šefčovič and incoming European Commissioner for Energy Miguel Cañete are taking up their posts just ahead of winter, when the EU in its talks with Russia needs to secure sufficient energy supplies for all member countries.
“This process needs to be looked on both from the mid- and long-term horizon, and especially with an eye towards preventing dependence on a single source, towards diversifying sources of energy carriers, build a single energy market and to remove obstacles that we face,” Šefčovič said, as quoted by TASR.
He further said that his aim will be to establish an energy union in order to have a well-functioning energy market and allow EU member states speak with one voice.
“The missing elements in the energy infrastructure within the EU need to be completed so that we can help each other and deal properly in energy, gas, oil and all energy carriers,” Šefčovič added, as quoted by TASR. “Special funding has been earmarked towards this. It is close to €6 billion that needs to be used towards the completion of this capacity.”
Source: TASR
Compiled by Radka Minarechová from press reports
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