Naimski announced his departure on Facebook, state news agency PAP reported.
He wrote: “On July 20, I was dismissed from my post as Government Commissioner for Strategic Energy Infrastructure and Secretary of State at the Prime Minister’s Office.”
Government spokesman Piotr Müller told reporters on Wednesday: “I can confirm that Piotr Naimski was relieved of his duties today.”
Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said in a tweet: “Piotr Naimski has been one of Poland’s top energy experts for years. The Baltic Pipe and many other projects that make up the architecture of Poland’s energy security are his legacy. Today he completes his mission in the government. I thank him for his work and dedication.”
Naimski, 71, had served as the government’s commissioner for strategic energy infrastructure since 2015.
He previously worked as head of the State Protection Office (UOP) (1992), security advisor to Prime Minister Jerzy Buzek (1999-2001) and energy security aide to President Lech Kaczyński (2008-2010). Between 2011 and 2019, he served as a member of parliament.
Baltic Pipe
Naimski was one of the brains behind the Baltic Pipe project, which he oversaw as the government’s top energy official, the PAP news agency reported.
Slated for launch on October 1, the Baltic Pipe will bring gas to Poland from Norway via Denmark.
Naimski on Wednesday described the pipeline as “one of Poland’s most important political and economic successes of the past 30 years.”
He added: “This year, the gas noose that Russia has put around Poland is being shaken off. Russia won’t be able to blackmail us with the threat of turning off the gas tap. Russia’s war against Ukraine and its use of energy blackmail against the whole of Europe show how important this is for the security of the country.”
In addition, Naimski supervised the construction of gas interconnections between Poland and neighbours Lithuania and Slovakia.
He was also responsible for Poland’s nuclear energy programme under which the country’s first nuclear power plant is expected to start operating in 2033.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP, money.pl