Critical infrastructure protection for energy security

Abstract

Based on political development in the nineties the concept of critical infrastructure protection was formulated as one of the security pillars. Energy, telecommunications, health care, food is infrastructure element from the perspective of the state. States have begun to aware of dependence on the operation of infrastructure areas and began actively work in this area. States define critical infrastructure and its elements, and gradually establish which specific elements create this infrastructure. The Czech Republic has an area of critical Infrastructure legislatively defined by amendment to the Act No. 240/2000 Coll. on crisis management.

Modern democratic society provides its citizens with optimal conditions for their life and development. Based on political developments in the,90s the concept of critical infrastructure was formulated as one of the foundational security pillars. Infrastructure sectors are elements that support the state by their inherent essential functions. The states recognizing their dependence on the infrastructure sectors began to actively protect this critical area. The energy is one of the key areas of critical infrastructure, including the production and distribution of electricity, heat, oil and their derivatives. The protection and resilience of energy sources and distribution is one of the areas that significantly improves the energy security. Given that all other areas of critical infrastructure fundamentally depend on electricity, any reduction of its delivery has a negative impact in terms of reducing the level of services. Thus protection of critical infrastructure is one of the key measures to ensuring energy security.