Břetislav Dančák

Unconventional Sources of Natural Gas: Development and Possible Consequences for the Central Eastern European Region

The upcoming years will show whether or not the North American model of unconventional natural gas resources development can be replicated outsider the continent. In Europe, Poland has recently gained most attention and in this sense it is considered to be a test case for whole Union. This book presents key dimensions which will either foster or inhibit possible development of this resource in Poland: geology, technology, infrastructure, environmental imprint and the role of the EU. The main focus of the book is a stakeholder analysis dealing with IOCs, PGNiG, government, local communities, NGOs and the EU. The book also features an evaluation of several scenarios of possible unconventional gas development in Poland and their consequences for Central European gas market.

The Future of the Druzhba Pipeline as a Strategic Challenge for the Czech Republic and Poland

The Druzhba pipeline is one of the most important energy infrastructure projects in Central and Eastern Europe, supplying the European part of Russias former Soviet bloc with oil since the second half of the last century. The future of the pipeline has become uncertain in recent years. The further use of Druzhba is in doubt mainly due to the difficult relations of the Russian Federation with transit countries, and its possible termination is indicated by Moscows change in its export strategy, namely increasing crude oil exports via sea terminals, at the expense of pipelines. The authors focus on how a potential curtailment of oil supplies by Druzhba can affect the energy situation of the two customer countries, i.e. the Czech Republic and Poland. Also, the text offers answers on many questions, such as Is there a danger of curtailment of the supply of oil via Druzhba to the surveyed countries? If so, what might be the mid-term implications of the situation, economic, security or other? Which actors will be affected by potential supply curtailment and how? The study focuses on the impact on economic entities (firms), the state and even households to a limited extent.

Central and Eastern Europe in the Process of Globalization and Europeanization: Comparing the Czech Republic and Poland

For both the Czech Republic and Poland, globalization is intricately linked to European integration and Europeanization. Globalization and European integration have strongly influenced the policies of these countries over the last 17 years. The Czech policy of accommodation and the Polish policy of initiation toward the European Union (EU) show two different ways how the individual Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries can react to the process of Europeanization. The Czech and Polish policies within CEE area are illustrative examples of reactions to the supraterritorializing effects of globalization. These two CEE countries have answered some of the challenges of globalization through sub-regional cooperation in the Central European Initiative (CEI), Visegrad Group (VG), and the Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA), followed by accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and later joining the EU. The Czech Republic and Poland are gradually entering the area of supra-territoriality. But concurrently both, as EU member states, participate in building and strengthening external territorial borders of the EU through the Schengen Agreement. Despite sharing the experience of disappearing of the EU internal borders, the Czech Republic and Poland have not completely relinquished their existing territorial identity. In the context of the break-up of the Czechoslovak federation it is also useful to examine the issues of deterritorialization and reterritorialization.