The Energy Community was founded in mid-2006 and consists of EU member states and nine countries of Southeast Europe, including Croatia.
The conference was attended by ministers from Southeast European countries in charge of energy, representatives of the European Commission and a dozen EU countries, the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
The conference adopted decisions on the defining and functioning of the Energy Community and on the accession of Turkey, Ukraine, Moldova and Norway to the Community in observer status.
The meeting was opened by European Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs, who highlighted the need for unity in dealing with the issue of secure energy supply.
In this context speakers cited several times Croatia and its key role as a hub of energy routes in Europe.
With planned investments of between four and five billion euros over the next five years, Croatia will become a very important hub of energy routes that will increase the security of supply not only for Croatia and Southeast Europe, but for the European Union in general, Vukelic said.
Vukelic said that Croatia had completed the construction of a gas pipeline running from the northern Adriatic city of Pula to Karlovac, 50 kilometres southwest of Zagreb, and that it would be formally put into operation next week.
Croatia plans to complete the construction of a country-wide gas supply network over the next five years, and also plans to build a Liquefied Natural Gas terminal and natural gas depots that would satisfy the country's needs and possibly attract the interest of neighbouring countries to use them, the minister said.