Equinor has entered into a ten-year agreement with Pražská plynárenská, the gas and electricity supplier for the city of Prague, to deliver natural gas to the Czech Republic.
The contract, effective immediately, is set to continue until 1 October 2035.
Under the agreement, Equinor will deliver gas at the Czech hub, with supplies intended for households and businesses in Prague and across the country.
The specific volumes and commercial conditions of the deal remain confidential.
Equinor will supply gas produced on the Norwegian Continental Shelf, which Pražská plynárenská will distribute to meet demand for heating, electricity generation and other uses among its customer base in the Czech Republic.
Equinor CEO Anders Opedal said: “I am excited that we have made this agreement with Pražská plynárenská and that we now provide energy to homes and enterprises in the Czech Republic.
“This joins a string of long-term gas contracts we have signed across Europe in recent years, demonstrating the role gas plays for European energy security.”
Having traditionally focused its gas supplies on north-west Europe and the UK, Equinor has widened its market over the past decade to include the Baltics and Poland.
The deal with Pražská plynárenská is expected to help the Norwegian oil and gas company’s expansion into central and southern Europe.
Pražská plynárenská is owned by the city of Prague. Its subsidiary, Pražská plynárenská Distribuce, manages the gas distribution network in the Czech capital and nearby areas, operating close to 4,500km of pipelines.
Another subsidiary, Prometheus, supplies heat and related services and works in Prague, supporting the implementation of its Climate Plan.
Chairman of the Pražská plynárenská Board of Directors Ludvík Baleka said: “This step will significantly strengthen the stability and reliability of natural gas supplies for Pražská plynárenská’s customers, and its scope will cover, among other things, a significant part of the total consumption of households supplied with natural gas by our company.”
Recently, Equinor completed the sale of its 40% operated interest in Brazil’s Peregrino field to local oil and gas company PRIO, for a total of $2.33bn (Nkr23.47bn).
