GAS MARKET LIBERALIZING IN THE UE COUNTRIES AND POLAND

The gas market is still a subject of changing toward a more complete liberalization. Construction of a common market of natural gas in the EU is still not completed, but the analyses of the market situation show many weaknesses of implementing liberalization. They result from the lack of sufficient harmonization of regulations and too many arbitrary path selections, scope and depth of market opening to competition. The process of the common market building requires new EU initiatives on harmonization of regulations and implementation of effective competition. The most important directions of changes and development carried out in the strategy, both in EU countries and Poland has been presented. At the end of the paper some final remarks have been formulated.