BASREC – Baltic Sea Region Energy Co-operation

The energy ministers of the Baltic Sea Region Countries and the European Commission decided in their conference in Helsinki in October 1999 that the energy co-operation in the region should be organized in the form of BASREC.

The countries and institutions participating in BASREC are Governments of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Russia and Sweden. The European Commission is represented by DG TREN, the Directorate General for Transport and Energy. The participation in this work programme also involves the Council of Baltic Sea States (CBSS) the Nordic Council of Ministers (NCM) and the Council of Baltic States (CBS).

"The BASREC co-operation has provided the CBSS member countries with a forum to build up a regional view of the energy policy strategies. The networks and the BASREC´s organizational structure give administrations and business actors in the energy sector a natural base for analyzing the possibilities to develop the market framework and rules in order to effectuate the energy supply and to reduce environmentally problematic impacts of energy production, use and transmission.

The EU enlargement, the implementation of new framework conditions for the energy sector through international agreements and rules and the growing need for energy trade between the enlarged EU and its neighbors influence the Baltic Sea region. It is extremely important that the political strategies and framework conditions support as consistently as possible the market developments and the chances to exploit the new situation favorably.

In addition to a well functioning network and a fruitful dialogue between energy sector administrations, the CBSS member countries and with representatives of energy sector business actors in the region, BASREC has conducted several studies, analyzed the status and possibilities of development in energy policy strategies in the region, published handbooks and studies, and organized seminars and workshops where regional problems and development possibilities in the energy sector have been analyzed. All these activities have resulted in a better understanding of the actions needed in order to develop the framework conditions of the energy markets and sustainability and to reduce the environmental impacts in the energy sector".