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NUCLEAR Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek came out strongly in support of nuclear power Nov. 5. The country faces an energy shortage as its coal-fired power plants are retired, and importing energy will not be an option due to regionwide shortages. Dialogue with the Green Party, which, as a member of the governing coalition, opposes building nuclear plants, must happen soon, he said. DAIRY Domestic dairy producers should join together and form sales cooperatives to resist price pressures put on them by supermarket chains, Miroslav Toman, president of the Czech Federation of Food and Drink Industries, said in Hospodářské noviny (HN) Nov. 5. Due to drought in Australia and Asian demand, milk prices have been on the rise this year. SUBWAY The railway company Škoda Transport will supply 4.5 billion Kč ($240.6 million) worth of components for the subway in St. Petersburg, Russia, according to a deal signed Nov. 4. In concert with its Russian counterpart, Škoda will also develop and produce trains for other countries in Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States, the companies said. EURO Speaking at a conference focused on euro adoption, Topolánek said the country will not join the euro zone by 2012, Právo reported Nov. 3. Joining the single currency will depend solely on implementing the governing coalitions’ proposed reforms, he said. Jaromír Drábek, president of the Economic Chamber, said it is irresponsible of the country not to set a euro target date.JOBS The Czech Republic’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.2 percent in the third quarter of this year, down 1.9 percentage points from last year, the Czech Statistical Office reported Nov. 2. It is the lowest rate since the end of 1997. Using different measurements, the Labor and Social Affairs Ministry reported unemployment at 6.3 percent for the same period.GAS In a further incursion into the Czech market, the Russian natural gas giant Gazprom is negotiating an investment into the country with Czech billionaire Karel Komárek, daily Mladá fronta Dnes reported Nov. 2. The project would see the construction of a massive underground gas storage reservoir, built in cooperation with Komárek’s oil company, Moravské naftové doly.TURKEY The energy giant ČEZ is planning to enter Turkey’s lucrative energy market, the company announced Nov. 1. It has entered into exclusive negotiations with the Turkish energy company Akenerji on potential mutual cooperation, it said. Because of its rapid growth, Turkey will have to construct 50,000 megawatt hours of electrical generation by 2020 to avoid a potential shortage.BETTING The Finance Ministry has reversed its position opposing Internet gambling, provided that protection against underage betting can be guaranteed, HN reported Oct. 31. The domestic online gambling market, which operates on the verge of legality, is valued at 4 billion Kč. The APKURS betting association said it welcomed strict regulation of Internet betting.
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