Poland moves to join NATO pipeline system
Poland's NATO infrastructural investment unit ZIOTP has signed an initial EUR 4.70 bln agreement with the country's oil pipeline operator PERN aimed to develop the national fuel infrastructure so that it can be linked to NATO pipelines.
The agreement was signed in Warsaw on Friday, with Deputy Defence Minister Cezary Tomczyk also present.
The deal also involves the expansion of Polish fuel storage facilities for NATO military needs.
"We're certainly aware today that it is a great day for Poland, and in fact the beginning of a great road that we are setting out on today," Tomczyk said at the signing ceremony.
Tomczyk went on to say that the investment will involve the construction of some 300 kilometres of pipelines, from the border with Germany to a PERN depot near Poland's north-central city of Bydgoszcz.
"We're talking about a PLN 20 billion (EUR 4.70 bln) project," he said.
After signing the agreement, Tomczyk said that the first talks about including Poland in the NATO infrastructure system started in 2014, after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine.
"Then, at the working level, at the NATO level, the concept was born that NATO countries that joined the alliance in 1999 could become part of this great system," Tomczyk said. "We fought for this project for 11 years."
He went on to say that NATO's headquarters allocated funds to Poland to plan and design the investment. After that stage is complete, all NATO member states will have to agree to approve the actual construction of the Polish section, he added.
Deputy Energy Minister Wojciech Wrochna said that it would be a dual-use investment, civilian in times of peace and military during potential conflicts.
"Being able to use this system for both civil and military purposes, we are giving ourselves the opportunity of better and more effective use of resources, thereby reducing the unit costs of these investments," Wrochna added.
In Thursday's statement, the Ministry of National Defence said that the investment was of key importance for Poland's energy and defence security. When it is completed, the investment will improve Poland's resilience to fuel crises and bolster the country's position as a strategic NATO partner in the region, according to the ministry.
"Investment in fuel transport and storage infrastructure is part of efforts to increase the mobility of troops and the operational effectiveness of the entire Alliance," the ministry added. (PAP)
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