Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili signed a strategic partnership agreement and discussed responses to the energy crisis in Budapest on Thursday. A key point on the agenda was the possibility of transiting electricity from Azerbaijan to Hungary via Georgia and Romania. Orban said a
The tensions around the burgeoning relations between Taiwan and Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) will be on the agenda when US president Joe Biden meets Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Bali today (Monday 14, November). Last Monday Lithuania opened its trade office in Taiwan, the same day that the 23-million
Estonia’s Sõrve peninsula area looks set to be the location for the major Estonian-Latvian hybrid offshore wind farm project ‘Elwind’, according to a feasibility study. The total capacity of the planned project will be 700MW to 1GW, and annually will provide over 3 TWh of energy, improving energy security
Czech-founded WAG Payment Solutions PLC announced on Tuesday that it has agreed to fully acquire Grupa Inelo SA, a leading fleet and work time manager in Poland and Slovenia, for up to EUR 306mn. FTSE 250 company WAG, also known as Eurowag, runs a digital platform that processes fuel and
Romanian lorry drivers urged their government to “relentlessly lobby” for the country to join the Schengen zone on Monday, asserting that preventing lengthy delays at its border with Hungary would increase freight volumes by around 20%. On Monday, Europa 2002 Haulier Employers’ Association chairman Adrian Pop echoed the sentiments of
The loan-book performance of banks in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) is set to worsen as interest rate hikes take their toll on the loan repayment capacity of borrowers, according to a report released by Moody’s on Thursday. The credit rating agency notes that although CEE region’s inflation
MEPs backed Bulgaria and Romania joining the Schengen zone in the coming months by an overwhelming margin on Tuesday. Of the 639 members of the European Parliament (EP), 547 voted in favour of the proposal to 49 against and 43 abstentions. After the vote, Romanian Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca tweeted
Passenger car production was up 21.2% year-on-year, to 381,971 units, in Romania in the first three quarters of 2022, according to figures released Monday. Of these 230,078 unites were Dacia and 151,893 Ford models, the Romanian Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACAROM) reported. The figures represented a rise
Organized by Mastercard for the second year in a row, the Central Europe (CE) Digital Payments Summit 2022 on 20 October will provide an industry forum for discussion and an exchange of ideas on the region’s pressing financial market issues, such as ongoing disruptions and innovation in the financial
The Romanian Energy Ministry has launched a renewable energy tender call worth EUR 457.7mn for projects totalling 950MW capacity, which will be open to wind and solar with the added possibility of links to storage. Some EUR 372.7mn will go to projects over 1MW, and EUR 75mn to
Czechia and Qatar signed bilateral agreements on Wednesday, as the Gulf state announced that it will open its first embassy in the Czech capital of Prague in the next few months. Qatar ruler Sheikh Tamim met Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala in Prague, and said mutual relations will be explored
The forint rebounded against both the US dollar and euro late Monday, on news that Russian-state-run energy company Gazprom has agreed not to collect payment on Hungary’s gas usage this winter. As per the deal, announced by the Hungarian Energy Board MVM earlier Monday, Hungary can delay payment for
Latvia’s ruling centre-right party Jauna Vienotiba (New Unity) was the clear winner in the country’s general elections at the weekend with around 19% of the vote, as Russian minority parties dropped out of parliament, with 99% of the votes counted on Sunday. The Greens and Farmers Union came
As national currencies shed value across Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) on Thursday, the Hungarian forint fell hardest, to historic lows of 423 to the euro and 437 to the US dollar. The forint led a slump in eastern European financial markets as worries over the fallout from Russia’s
Polish officials symbolically commissioned the Baltic Pipe natural gas pipeline with Norway on Tuesday, a day that turned out to be epochal for energy in Europe. With an annual capacity of ten billion cubic metres, the pipeline opens a new North Sea channel for Norwegian gas imports via Denmark. “The
German carmaker Volkswagen (VW) may close its plants in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) if the natural gas shortage persists beyond this winter, procurement manager Geng Wu said. Volkswagen will consider bringing factories closer to the point of sales, in the medium-term, Wu added, citing the worldwide shortage of microchips
Hungarian Sinologist Tamas Matura argued in his recent report for CEPA that China wields little influence in Hungary, despite the Hungarian government’s decade of support for Beijing in the EU. However, shortly after the release of the CEPA report, China’s CATL announced plans to build a EUR 7.
Onsemi inaugurated the expansion of its silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductor fabrication plant in Roznov, east Czechia, on Wednesday. The USD 450mn investment will create 200 jobs and increase onsite SiC production capabilities 16-fold over the next two years. The Arizona-based semiconductor supplier makes SiC power devices for electric vehicles and
Slovenia will receive 3.26 billion euros in EU funding via a partnership agreement, the details of which it finalised with the European Commission (EC) on Monday, 19 September. The deal covers the EU’s current funding period of 2021-27. European Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms Elisa Ferreira said “Slovenia
The European Commission (EC) recommended the rescinding of 7.5 billion euros worth of cohesion funds from Hungary on Sunday, unless it enacts reforms that address rule of law issues in the country. After weeks of intensive dialogue between the EC and officials from Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government,
Polish refiner PKN Orlen is considering buying a majority stake in the PCK Schwedt refinery in north-east Germany, which until Friday 16 September was controlled by a subsidiary of Russia’s Rosneft, Reuters learned from sources in Poland and Germany. The deal could offer a solution to the upcoming EU’
Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary said his budget airline has no plans to withdraw from Hungary but will cease some services in the winter months in response to the government’s “idiotic” windfall tax on airlines, at a press conference in the Hungarian capital of Budapest on Tuesday. The move
As the September 21 deadline approaches, leaders in Brussels are split on whether to finally unlock billions of euros that have been withheld from Hungary due to concerns about the rule of law and corruption in the country. In addition to around EUR 6bn that Hungary was earmarked to receive
As the EU accelerates its shift to electric vehicles by outlawing internal combustion engines by 2035, the auto industries in Central Europe are transiting to e-mobility. Battery plants can play a key role in the absorption of manpower as conventional car making is phased out, while pulling in new electronic
Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are finalising coordinated agreements on restricting entry for the Russian citizens with Schengen visas, the three Baltic countries’ foreign ministers announced after a meeting of the Nordic-Baltic Eight in Kaunas, Lithuania, on Wednesday. The Baltic countries are planning tighter measures than those announced by the EU