The Czech government will look at putting a limit on industrial electricity bills at the same time as it tries to help households and state institutions get through Europe’s energy crisis, Finance Minister Zbynek Stanjura said on Sunday.
The centre-right government is readying more measures to go alongside European Union plans to ease the burden of soaring energy prices after an emergency meeting of the bloc’s energy ministers on Friday.
The Czech government is due to meet on Monday.
“I am for a bold solution,” Stanjura said on Czech Television’s Sunday debate show, referring to guaranteeing electricity prices for industry.
He backed the move “even with the possible risk that it will be assessed that there was some unauthorized support,” he added, in a possible reference to EU competition and aid rules.
This step could be in place by the end of the year and would last up to two years, he told the show.
Stanjura told daily Hospodarske Noviny last week that national plans to ease the burden of soaring energy costs, including some form of price cap, could cost up to 130 billion crowns.
The Czechs have started implementing a reduced electricity tariff for households as part of their plans, and are creating a state energy trader to help guarantee reasonable prices for state institutions like schools or hospitals.
Stanjura said on Sunday legislation to mandate electricity producers to sell a certain amount to the state, less than 20% of their output, would be necessary.
He also said compensation for power producers amid caps was also unlikely as they would still cover costs and keep reasonable profits.
National plans would run alongside EU measures. On Friday, EU energy ministers tasked the bloc’s executive with drafting proposals within a few days to cap the revenues of non-gas energy producers and help power firms stay afloat as they sought a united response to tame soaring energy costs.
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The Czech government would like to cap electricity prices for households, schools and hospitals, Finance Minister Zbyněk Stanjura told Czech Television on Sunday. He would like to see electricity prices for businesses capped at EUR 200 per megawatt hour.
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The court proceedings in the Capi hnizdo (Stork Nest) case of a suspected subsidy fraud has been the first political trial since the November 1989 fall of the Communist regime, ex-PM Andrej Babis, said in the Chamber of Deputies. The “post-November cartel of mainstream parties” is behind it, he added.
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On Thursday, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky and his Polish counterpart Zbigniew Rau discussed Poland’s demands for the return of 368 hectares of land from the Czech Republic, part of an ongoing dispute since the 1950s, according to the Polish daily Rzeczpospolita.
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The minister of interior and chairman of the Mayors and Independents, Vít Rakušan, should resign according to 56 percent of respondents in a survey conducted by the Median agency for Czech Radio.
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A male gorilla called Kisumu has arrived in Prague Zoo after being transported from Zoo Schmiding in Austria, the director of Prague Zoo Miroslav Bobek announced on Twitter on Saturday. Kisumu is expected to ensure the continuation of the city zoo’s gorilla population.
A new tram stop shelter was unveiled at the Stromovka stop in Prague 7 yesterday, and this one has an interesting twist: it was created using 3D printing technology, the first of its kind produced in the Czech Republic
It was created using robotic 3D-printing technology from ultra-high-efficiency concrete (UHPC). Production took only 36 hours.
“In addition to the speed of production, other important advantages are the minimal use of steel, which is currently in short supply, no need for maintenance, as well as countless opportunities to change the design, which allows creating a specific pavilion for a particular selected location”, the company said.
The glass roof of the pavilion can change its illumination with the help of built-in LED diodes.
The tram stop shelter was printed by the company So Concrete founded by the artist Federico Díaz and the co-owner of the development company Karlín Group Serge Borenstein.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III visited the Czech Republic, September 9, where he met with Czech Minister of Defense Jana Cernochova, Prime Minister Petr Fiala, and President Milos Zeman.
During the meetings, he discussed Czech Republic’s defense modernization work to enhance interoperability with NATO, opportunities for further defense cooperation, and the importance of continuing to provide support to Ukraine.
He began his trip to Prague on Friday with a visit to the Church of Saints Cyril and Methodius, where seven Czechoslovak paratroopers died in June 1942 in a gun battle with German troops after having assassinated high-ranking Nazi Reinhard Heydrich.
The Secretary applauded the Czech Republic for its leadership in Europe and in the NATO Alliance, for ratifying the accession of Finland and Sweden into NATO, and for its extraordinary support to Ukraine as it defends against Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified war.
Ms. Černochová described the United States as Czechia’s most important ally. The two countries want to speed up negotiations on a defence cooperation agreement, with the next meeting scheduled to take place in two weeks’ time.
Secretary Austin also met with U.S. Marines at U.S. Embassy Prague and several U.S service members participating in the Czech Republic-led, multi-national exercise Ample Strike 22, and thanked them for their service.
US-donated helicopters May Arrive in the Czech Republic by end of 2023
The first military helicopters being donated by the United States to the Czech army may arrive in the Czech Republic by the end of 2023. The helicopters are currently located in Hawaii, Czech Defence Minister Jana Cernochova told journalists on Friday.
Czech technicians are leaving for the USA now to find out what adjustments need to be made to the helicopters. The costs of their overhaul are therefore not clear for now, Cernochova said.
A couple of years ago, the Czech Republic ordered a supply of 12 Viper and Venom helicopters from the US, produced by Bell and worth CZK 14.6 billion.
Together with the donated ones, the Czech military will have 20 U.S.-made helicopters.
They will be used helicopters but still fully operational. “It will be a gift, we will only pay for repairs, for an overhaul according to our requirements, for their transport to the Czech Republic and other connected costs that cannot be accurately defined for now, but the sum is incomparably [lower] than the price of new helicopters would be,” said Cernochova.
Ever wanted to learn how to make uramaki or temaki? Well now is your chance.
On September 25 at 2:00 p.m., Imperial Sushi opens a course on how to prepare real traditional sushi.
With access to premium sushi-making equipment and freshly prepared ingredients, guests will have the chance to hone their culinary skills as they try their hands at preparing Uramaki, Hosomaki, Nigiri, and Temaki.
Following the sushi-making session, guests will be invited to indulge in a sharing-style lunch, with a welcome drink, California roll (8 pcs), Hosomaki (16 pcs), Nigiri (3 pcs), Temaki (1 pc), Miso soup, salads and fusion rolls included in the price.
With a minimum capacity of 6 students, this masterclass makes for the perfect setting to meet like-minded people and understand sushi’s rich history.
The masterclass lasts approximately 3 hours and a reservation is required.
Price: 1790 CZK.
Below you can find some shots from the previous masterclass at Imperial Sushi.
Roger Waters from the legendary Pink Floyd returns to Prague with his first farewell tour “This Is Not A Drill”. The most famous songs and a breathtaking audiovisual show guarantee an extraordinary experience!
“This Is Not A Drill is a groundbreaking new rock and roll/cinematic extravaganza, performed in the round, it is a stunning indictment of the corporate dystopia in which we all struggle to survive, and a call to action to LOVE, PROTECT and SHARE our precious and precarious planet home.
The show includes a dozen great songs from PINK FLOYD’S GOLDEN ERA along side several new ones, words and music, same writer, same heart, same soul, same man. Could be his last hurrah. Wow! My first farewell tour! Don’t miss it. Love R.”
The show features 20 Pink Floyd and Roger Waters classic songs, including: “Us & Them”, “Comfortably Numb”, “Wish You Were Here”, and “Is This The Life We Really Want?”. In addition, Waters debuts a new song, “The Bar”.
Waters is on lead vocals, guitars, bass and piano and will be joined on stage by, Jonathan Wilson on guitars and vocals; Dave Kilminster on guitars and vocals; Jon Carin on keyboards, guitar and vocals, Gus Seyffert on bass and vocals; Robert Walter on keyboards, Joey Waronker on drums; Shanay Johnson on vocals; Amanda Belair on vocals and Seamus Blake on saxophone.
Roger Waters is a seventy-nine-year-old English musician and composer, co-founder of Pink Floyd, one of the most important bands in the history of popular music, formed in 1965. Pink Floyd were, and still are, a part of the lives of millions of people around the world, critically acclaimed and commercially hugely successful.
Roger Waters left Pink Floyd in the early 1980s due to disagreements over the future direction of the group, but he left us with Pink Floyd many classic albums, most notably the concept album The Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here, Animals, and his original magnum opus The Wall.
In the following years, Waters continued to release solo albums, most notably Radio K.A.O.S. (1987) and Amused to Death (1992). His last solo album to date is “Is This the Life We Really Want?” from 2017.
Roger Waters has been touring relentlessly since 1999, performing both The Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall in Prague. His performances are always a treat for the ears and eyes, the music is always accompanied by impressive clips and various lighting effects.
His upcoming tour “THIS IS NOT A DRILL TOUR 2023” will also take generously from the work of Pink Floyd. This may be the last opportunity to hear and experience live the music of a musical legend that will never be repeated.
Ticket prices from CZK 1990 to CZK 3290
More information here
As part of the 2022 NHL Global Series, the National Hockey League (NHL), the National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) and Live Nation today announced 2022 NHL Global Series Fan Day, a special opportunity for fans to attend Nashville Predators and San Jose Sharks team practices from 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 6 at O2 Arena in Prague, the day prior to the Predators-Sharks 2022-23 season-opening matchup.
Tickets to Predators and Sharks practices will be available for purchase beginning Thursday, Sept. 8 at 10 a.m via Ticketmaster.cz and Ticketportal.cz. Tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis, while supplies last.
In April, the NHL, the NHLPA and Live Nation Sweden announced that the Predators and Sharks, along with the Columbus Blue Jackets and Colorado Avalanche, will participate in the 2022 NHL Global Series.
The Sharks and Predators will open the 2022-23 regular season against each other in Prague, Czech Republic, at O2 Arena with games on Friday, Oct. 7 and Saturday, Oct. 8. The Avalanche and Blue Jackets will face off in a pair of regular-season games at Nokia Arena in Tampere, Finland, on Friday, Nov. 4 and Saturday, Nov. 5.
Prior to their games in Prague, the Predators and Sharks will complete their training camps in Europe and will each play in an exhibition match as part of the 2022 NHL Global Series Challenge.
The Predators will report to Bern, Switzerland, and play an exhibition game against SC Bern at PostFinance Arena on Monday, Oct. 3. The Sharks will report to Berlin, Germany, and play an exhibition game against Eisbären Berlin at Mercedes-Benz Arena on Tuesday, Oct. 4.
The 2022 NHL Global Series will mark the ninth season overall that the NHL has traveled to Europe to play regular-season games, and the first time since 2019.
There have been 28 regular-season NHL games played in Europe. To date, there have been five NHL regular-season games played in the Czech Republic, which have all been played at O2 Arena in Prague. This year’s games in Finland will mark the first NHL regular-season games to ever be played in Tampere. For a complete list of NHL regular-season games played outside North America, click here.
Start your new career in Prague at the Jobspin Job Fair. The Prague Relocation Fair will cover some of the most important topic areas in any expat’s life.
The gate at Praha Vystaviste opens on 24 September at 10 am. As a bonus, an open networking event opens from 4 pm.
Jobspin Job Fair is perfect for international and bilingual job seekers looking for new job opportunities in Prague. Hundreds of expats have found jobs as a result of attending the Jobspin Job Fairs. The Prague Relocation Fair brings together some of the key services for Prague expats under one roof. The official language of the fairs is English. And, as always, the job fair is FREE to attend for all visitors.
“The job fair is a fairly unique concept as it is tailored for the international community in the Czech Republic,” said Katerina Casadei, the main event organiser from the Jobspin team. “It is hard to find another such event that revolves only around expats. It is in our company’s core values, too – we commit to making new people feel welcome in the Czech Republic and making this country more open to positive influences from the whole world.”
You can expect an information-packed program of the most prominent companies and expert workshops at the fair.
Come and find:
- full-time job offers,
- part-time job offers, volunteering opportunities
- special discounts on expat-friendly services
- an all-day program of information-packed presentations
- expert workshops
- free visa advice
- an open networking hour at the Relax Zone
- professional help with your housing and finance matters
- the best insights into education options in Prague, including English-friendly study programs
- and much more…
Jobspin Job Fair
Take the chance to chat directly with hiring managers and hand them your CV. Find out who is hiring and what skills they are looking for. The Jobspin Job & Relocation Fair is an event where you can establish professional connections with global companies such as the world’s largest brewer AB InBev, premium pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson, entertainment and telecommunication giant AT&T and many more.
Prague Relocation Fair
Need a doctor? Want to renew your visa but don’t know how? Need to move or buy a new property? The Prague Relocation Fair will cover the most important areas in any expat’s life. The participating companies and organisations come from a wide range of sectors including: Relocation and Visa, Housing, Finance, Education, Health Care, Communication, and Transport.
“We have decided to extend the original concept of the Jobspin Job Fair with a relocation element to respond to the demand from our audience,” said Katerina Casadei. “As many people that come to our events need information on visas, housing and finance, as well as getting to know the Czech job market, it felt only natural to invite organisations that can provide them with the relevant advice.”
This event will take place at Křižíkův pavilon B, Výstaviště Praha Holešovice, 24 September, 2022, from 10am-5pm.
Networking Program
Leverage this event, make professional and friendly contacts, and let them open doors to new opportunities. From 4 pm-5 pm the Pracovna.cz Relax Zone at the fair will become an open networking area. Meet interesting people and turn them into valuable contacts.
If you wish to join, please follow this link and register for your free ticket. Registration is mandatory, but entry is free of charge.
The fair is a pet-friendly and family-friendly event.
Czech politicians have been expressing their condolences following the announcement that Queen Elizabeth II has died at the age of 96.
Eva Bouchalová – Head of Press & Public Affairs at the British Embassy in Prague – said several candles have already appeared in front of the building in Malá Strana.
President Miloš Zeman said that he had received the news of the Queen’s death with great sorrow, adding that he admired her lifelong devotion to the British monarchy and the hard work and immense humility with which she served her nation.
Zeman also said that she had been a symbol of stability.
In honor of the monarch, the Petřín Tower shone in the colors of the British flag last night.
The Czech prime minister, Petr Fiala, said that he was deeply saddened by the death of Queen Elizabeth II and sent heartfelt and sincere condolences to the Royal family, the British people, and the people of the Commonwealth.
Czech leaders and politicians commemorate the visit of the Queen to Prague in March 1996.
Elizabeth II was the first monarch to visit the Czech Republic but not the first member of the British royal family. In 1991, Prince Charles and his wife Princess Diana had accepted President Havel’s invitation.
Havel accompanied the Queen on Charles Bridge where she met local residents, and on her visit to Brno.
He presented the Queen with the Order of the White Lion, the highest state order of the Czech Republic. President Havel also introduced to the Queen representatives of the Czech Jazz Section, a civic non-profit association.
President Havel also introduced to the Queen representatives of the Czech Jazz Section, a civic non-profit association. They gave the Queen an original poster with a portrait of Winston Churchill and an address to the Czech and Slovak pilots fighting in the World War II.
The slogan on the poster reads: “Čechoslováci! Hodina vašeho osvobození přijde!” (“Czechoslovaks! The hour of your liberation is approaching!”).
In 1998, Havel was welcomed in Buckingham Palace with all honors.
Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský said that the Queen had been a symbol of dedication, hard work and humanity. He said his thoughts were with the Royal Family and all citizens of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth.
On October 11th, Prague will host the continental Startup Champions League finals and the sixth edition of the Startup World Cup.
This grand finale of the EU Startup League is happening during the Disraptors Summit (formerly Startup World Cup & Summit).
The continental finals will be preceded by a regional round for startups from the Central & Eastern Europe region. Registration is free and will close at midnight on September 25th, 2022.
The EU Champion title includes an investment offer of $500,000 from the competition organizers and advancement to the global finals in Silicon Valley.
Many Czech and EU investors including Venture Capital firms like Air Ventures, UP21, J&T Ventures & AI Startup Incubator will take part to the Disruptors Summit. If you have a Startup and you are looking for connection with investors this is the right place.
One pitch to rule them all
The route to the pan-European finals includes the regional rounds of the Startup World Cup or any of the associated startup competitions. For example, winners of Italy’s We Make Future or Poland’s Wolves Summit will also go before the Disraptors Summit jury.
“We are building European Champions League within startup competitions and attracting an elite of young startups to the Czech Republic,” explains Vaclav Pavlecka, co-founder of Disraptors Summit.
“While last year we hosted finalists from six European countries under the old SWCSummit brand, this year we will reach many more interesting projects thanks to a broader concept. We are accepting winners and finalists from nine other startup competitions. I believe the audience and investors have much to look forward to!“
Most of the associated competitions already know their winners. Startups wishing to enter this year’s competition have only one option: to apply for the CEE regional round via the form on disraptors.com.
Analysts will select the top ten projects from the hundreds of entries to present in the CEE competition on Monday, October 10th. Two projects will then advance to Tuesday’s final and pitch to the international jury on the main stage.
The 2021 winner was the project Tatum, whose breakthrough platform significantly simplifies the creation of blockchain applications.
Register within the hour
Registration for the CEE regional round is free, and the questionnaire takes 30-60 minutes to complete on average. Startups upload pitch decks and fill in information about their product, team, business model setup, stage, competitors, and the market. Around 500 projects apply for the V4 competition yearly, but only a handful of the best projects ever make it to the jury.
Finals on the main stage of Disraptors Summit
Every year, investors and mentors come to Prague from all over Europe and overseas – people that would typically be unreachable for individual startups. Here they not only have the opportunity to meet them directly, but they can also arrange individual sessions with them or participate in their workshops or panel discussions.
Previous speakers have included such luminaries as Steve Wozniak, Elon Musk’s sister Tosca Musk, Esther Wojcicki, Kyle Corbitt from Y Combinator, and Dave Evans from Stanford.
Details of this year’s line-up and the individual parts of the program are gradually being added to the website, where tickets can be purchased – now at a bargain starting price which starts at 60 euros.
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Jan Zizka, a film about 15-century Hussite warrior Jan Zizka directed by Petr Jakl in international co-production, which is the most expensive film in Czech cinematography history with a budget of almost 0.5 billion crowns, is released in cinemas in Czechia today. The international premiere for invited guests took place in Prague on Thursday with most foreign actors featuring in the film present.
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Pressure on Turkey must be exerted over the rising number of Syrian refugees coming to the EU from this country in the past months, Czech Interior Minister Vit Rakusan told reporters in the Chamber of Deputies today, adding that he wants to debate this issue with his EU counterparts.
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The Czech government has decided not to continue the legal dispute with the European Commission started by the previous government of Andrej Babiš over a blocked subsidy, news site irozhlas.cz reported on Thursday.
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Gas storage capacities in Czechia are continuing to be filled despite Russia halting its gas supplies via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline and have so far reached 85% capacity, Industry Minister Jozef Síkela said on Thursday.
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Czech National Anti-drug Coordinator Jindřich Vobořil wants to strictly regulate the Czech cannabis market as cannabis sales should be decriminalised and regulated at the European level.
The desecration of Jewish cemeteries under the communist regime of the former Czechoslovakia has been given official recognition with a new memorial fashioned from headstones that were carved up and used for paving stones in Prague.
The Return of the Stones monument, consisting of 7 tonnes of broken tombstones, was unveiled on Wednesday in Prague’s old Jewish cemetery, which itself was partly desecrated to make a public park before becoming the site of the city’s soaring television tower.
In the shadow of the 709ft (216-metre) tower, Karol Sidon, the Czech Republic’s chief rabbi, recited a Hebrew blessing for the new structure, which was commissioned by the local Jewish community after the cobblestones were dug up in Prague’s Wenceslas Square in May 2020 at the start of an extensive facelift.
The paving stones are thought to have been made from headstones taken from Jewish cemeteries in the northern Bohemia region during the communist period, which ended in 1989 when the Velvet Revolution ushered in a new era of democratic rule.
They were laid in Wenceslas Square in a pedestrianisation project carried out in preparation for a visit by the then Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, to Prague in 1987.
Prague city council handed them over to the Jewish community as part of a prior agreement drawn up amid widespread suspicions that they were made from headstones taken from graveyards. It has not been possible to identify any individuals commemorated by the headstones.
František Bányai, the chairman of Prague’s Jewish community, called the paving stones a “symbol of barbarism, rudeness and archaic ruthlessness” and compared the former communist regime’s treatment of cemeteries and religious sites to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The memorial, whose £28,000 cost was paid for by private donors and a public crowdfunding campaign, was the work of a Czech sculptor, Jaroslav Róna, and his wife, Lucie, an architect.
“The idea is that the memorial acts as a place of meditation and commemoration for those people who know that the cemeteries where their relatives lay were destroyed,” the sculptor said. “They can come here and spend some time.”
More headstones are expected to be discovered elsewhere in the square during future work. They will be used to extend the memorial.