Generating cooperation

This week the second Regional Energy Forum, an initiative which seeks to identify and address energy issues in the CEE region, is being held in Budapest. Representatives of multinational conglomerate GE and the American Chamber of Commerce in Poland were met last week to discuss the significance of the event and the importance of regional cooperation on energy.

Lesław Kuzaj, GE's regional executive for Central Europe, noted that people in the CEE region aren't accustomed to thinking regionally. Instead, he said, they look west for answers. "There is still something in our mentality that, when we think about our careers [for example], we first think about Western Europe," Kuzaj said.

"Perhaps the public mentality is not ready," he said, but added that it was important to show Central Europeans the need for regional cooperation.

"This is not a zero-sum game, and people need to understand that," said Eszter Szabo, GE's regional leader for corporate communication and public affairs, CEE and Turkey.

What kind of cooperation? Kuzaj broached the idea that countries could specialize in different forms of energy. The CzechRepublic and Slovakia might specialize in nuclear power, for instance, Poland in wind farms and Hungary in biogas, he said. Szabo qualified that this was just a rough example, however, and not a concrete proposal.

This year's forum is scheduled for October 7-8.