This article refers to the natural gas company in the Czech Republic

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

. For the Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 Crown corporation, see SaskEnergy

SaskEnergy

SaskEnergy is a Crown corporation of the Saskatchewan government which delivers natural gas to 92% of the province through a 67,000 kilometre distribution system to over 347,000 customers...

.
RWE Transgas is the largest natural gas

Natural gas

Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...

 trading company in the Czech Republic

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

. Its subsidiaries in the Czech Republic

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

 include Net4Gas (a transmission system operator), and RWE Gas Storage (a storage system operator). RWE Transgas is owned by the German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 energy company RWE

RWE

RWE AG , is a German electric power and natural gas public utility company based in Essen. Through its various subsidiaries, the energy company contributes electricity and gas to more than 20 million electricity customers and 10 million gas customers, principally in Europe...

.

The group owns pipelines from Lanžhot on Czech-Slovak border to Germany. Its market position deteriorated in 1997 when competing Yamal-Europe pipeline

Yamal-Europe pipeline

The Yamal–Europe natural gas pipeline is a long pipeline connecting natural gas fields in Western Siberia and in the future on the Yamal peninsula, Russia, with Germany.-History:...

 was put into operation. Another threat is the Nord Stream linking Russia and Germany via Baltic sea.