Eurogas Annual Regional Conference 'Czech Republic: The Energy Transition and the role of Gas'

Speakers for this event

• Cristina Lobillo Borrero

  Cristina Lobillo Borrero

  Energy Platform Task Force, DG ENER, European Commission

  Originally, from Cordoba in Spain, Cristina Lobillo Borrero is a lawyer with qualifications from Spain, Belgium and the Harvard Business School. Having previously worked in the Spanish government for the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, she joined the European Commission in 2004, working originally on agriculture policy and then moving to trade issues. From 2014 to 2019 she was the Head of Cabinet to the then EU Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy, Miguel Arias Cañete. As Commissioner Miguel Arias Cañete was the EU’s chief negotiator in the COP, she was present in Paris for parts of the COP21 session and therefore had an important role in the EU team. Former Commissioner’s term in office was also noted for its successful overhaul of EU energy legislation under the so-called Clean energy for all Europeans package. From December 2019 to June 2020, she was Principal Adviser at the Directorate General for Agriculture and, from June 2020 to June 2022, she was Director for Energy Policy: Strategy and Coordination in the European Commission’s Directorate General for Energy. In this role, she was heavily involved in the preparations of the legislative proposals of “fit for 55” package. Her responsibilities as Director also included overseeing EU international relations on energy issues, coordination with Member States as well as with the EU institutions, together with the communication, legal and economic aspects of EU energy policy. Since June 2022 she is Director – Head of Energy Platform Task Force in DG ENER, European Commission.

  Energy Platform Task Force, DG ENER, European Commission

• Didier Holleaux

  Didier Holleaux

  President of Eurogas

  After graduating as an Engineer (Ecole Polytechnique and Ecole Nationale des Mines de Paris), Didier HOLLEAUX started to work as an Engineer in the car-manufacturing and in the oil industry. He then made a career in the French Civil Service which led him to the position of head of the departmental staff (“Directeur de Cabinet”) of the Energy Minister (1992-1993).

  Didier HOLLEAUX joined Gaz de France (merged in GDF SUEZ in 2008 and renamed as ENGIE in 2015), in 1993. Since then, he held different managing positions in the transmission, distribution, and LNG businesses of the company. He also founded and managed the North Sea Exploration and Production (1997-2000) and managed the worldwide Exploration and Production of the group (2007-2015). Since 1st of July 2015, he is Executive Vice President of ENGIE. He is currently in charge of special projects particularly in the field of renewable gases and external representation.

  Didier HOLLEAUX has been elected President of Eurogas in June 2021.

  President of Eurogas

• Ing. Pavel Řežábek

  Ing. Pavel Řežábek

  Head Economist, ČEZ group

  Head Economist, ČEZ group

• Jan Habart

  Jan Habart

  Chairman, CZ Biom

  Chairman, CZ Biom

• Martin Šik

  Martin Šik

  Director of Analysis and Data Support Department, Energy Regulatory Office

  Martin holds a master’s degree in public policy form Central European University in Budapest and a law degree from Charles University in Prague.
  Martin has worked for the Energy Regulatory Office in the Czech Republic in various international as well as domestic positions since 2011. His tasks have included coordination of the European regulatory activities of the Office and direct participation in various European working groups (CEER, ACER, and EC). Over the year years, he has worked on a number of projects of national, regional, and Europe-wide significance. In 2017-2020 served on CEER Board of Directors as one of the organization’s vice presidents.
  As of 2020 Martin is in charge of ERO’s data and analysis work, including market monitoring and statistics. In this capacity, Martin has contributed to the handling of the ongoing of the ongoing energy crisis making sure that the ERO leadership is supplied with accurate and up-to-date information on current market developments.

  Director of Analysis and Data Support Department, Energy Regulatory Office

• MEP Alexandr Vondra

  MEP Alexandr Vondra

  Member of the ENVI Committee, European Parliament (ECR, CZ)

  Alexandr Vondra is a currentely Member of the European Parliament.
  Alexandr Vondra was born on 17 August 1961 in Prague. From 1979 to 1984, he studied geography at the Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague. During the communist regime in Czechoslovakia, he joined the democratic opposition. Since the mid-1980s, he has been in contact with dissidents in Hungary, Poland and Lithuania. In 1989, he was a spokesperson for Charter 77 and one of the authors of the petition Several Sentences. During the Velvet Revolution in November 1989, he became a co-founder and leading member of the Civic Forum movement with former president Václav Havel. In 90s, he worked as a foreign policy advisor to President Václav Havel. In 2001-2002, he was the Czech Government’s Plenipotentiary for the preparation of the NATO Summit in Prague. Alexandr Vondra is former Minister of Defence and Foreign Affairs, as well as Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs. Vondra also served as Czech Ambassador to the United States.

  Member of the ENVI Committee, European Parliament (ECR, CZ)

• Paul Voss

  Paul Voss

  Director General, European Aluminium

  Paul Voss is Director General at European Aluminium, the industry voice of the aluminium value chain in Europe. Mr. Voss is a long-term public affairs and governmental relations expert with 20 years of experience in the Brussels and energy sector. Prior to joining the aluminium industry, Mr. Voss served as Managing Director at Euroheat & Power, the association for the European district energy sector, and as Head of Public and Industrial Affairs at energy solutions provider Danfoss District Energy.
  A British-Belgian national, Paul Voss is married with three children and holds degrees in Political Science and European Public Administration from Universities in Canada, France and Belgium.

  Director General, European Aluminium

• René Neděla

  René Neděla

  Deputy Minister for Industry and Trade - Energy, Czech Presidency

  Mr. René Neděla graduated at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Department of Control and Instrumentation of the Czech Technical University. He also graduated at the Masaryk Institute of Advanced Studies in the field of Business and Industrial Engineering in Industry. He also graduated from the Florence School of Regulation – Annual Training Course on the Regulation of Energy Utilities (Certificate of Attendance). Since 2011, he worked in the Energy Regulatory Office in several positions, starting from the Energy Regulatory Specialist, Head of Strategy and Advisory Department and Heat Department Director up to the Director of the Regulatory Section. At the same time, he lectured technical subjects at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the CTU and, later on, at the Technical University of Prague. He has been active in various governmental and non-governmental working groups on energy and water.

  Deputy Minister for Industry and Trade - Energy, Czech Presidency

• Roxana Caliminte

  Roxana Caliminte

  Deputy Secretary General of GIE

  Roxana has been the Deputy Secretary General of Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE) since 2017. GIE is the voice of the European gas infrastructure operators, including gas pipelines, storage and LNG terminals. It has 70 members across 26 countries. Before joining GIE, she worked for the Romanian gas transmission operator Transgaz, where she was responsible for the company’s relations with the EU and national governments. She’s also worked in the Romanian Parliament as an advisor on international relations and economic affairs. Roxana holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration and German. She has studied in Germany, Belgium and Russia. She was the coordinator of the now-defunct EU-Russia Gas Advisory Council. She is a visiting lecturer at the Bucharest Academy of Economic Affairs.

  Deputy Secretary General of GIE

• Veronika Vohlídková

  Veronika Vohlídková

  Acting Executive Director, Czech Gas Association & Member of the Board, Czech Hydrogen Technology Platform

  Veronika Vohlídková studied International Trade at the Faculty of International Relations at the University of Economics in Prague. From 2011 to 2016, she worked at ČEZ, where she focused mainly on the European agenda with a focus on financial legislation and regulation. Between 2016 and 2018, she worked at NET4GAS as a senior specialist for regulation. Since November 2018, she has been the director of the legislative-strategic department of the Czech Gas Association, and from June 2022 she has been acting executive director. Since November 2019, she has been a member of the board of directors of the Czech Hydrogen Technology Platform.

  Acting Executive Director, Czech Gas Association & Member of the Board, Czech Hydrogen Technology Platform