Small is not (always) beautiful: small hydro development in the Western Balkans
By Igor Vejnović, Hydropower Policy Officer, CEE Bankwatch Network It has long been recognized that the human and environmental costs of large dams are extremely high — just recently the failure of the overflow channels at the Oroville dam, California, almost triggered a tragedy. Across the Balkans, however, instead of coming up with genuinely new ideas, […]
Government of Cyprus to establish renewable energy agency
The government of Cyprus is planning to establish the renewable energy agency that will draft and implement a national renewable action plan. Legislation to enable this is in the process of preparation. Currently, there are several institutions in charge of renewable energy sources (RES) and climate change policies: the Ministry of Energy, Commerce, Industry and […]
UNDP project for local communities more resilient to climate change
The project “Local development resilient to climate change” officially started with the signing of the project document by project’s partners representatives: Stana Božović, state secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture and Environmental Protection and Steliana Nedera, deputy UNDP representative . “The aim of the project is to identify the needs of municipal governments, primarily in […]
SINCRO.GRID project to secure regional electricity supply
Four Slovenian and Croatian transmission and distribution system operators (TSOs and DSOs) are implementing the SINCRO.GRID project aimed to secure regional electricity supply. The SINCRO.GRID project implements an innovative cross-border approach with the aim to solve short-term operational security issues impacting Slovenia, Croatia and the whole South-Eastern Europe (SEE) region. A key aspect of the […]
First ELEN charger for electric vehicles installed in Rijeka
Croatian national energy company Hrvatska elektroprivreda (HEP) installed the first ELEN charger for electric vehicles in the city of Rijeka. It allows simultaneous charging of two cars, and the charging time is between one and four hours. Using the ELEN charger in Rijeka is free of charge, but requires RFID identification card, which owners of […]
Hungarian company interested in improving water and wastewater management in Albania
The Hungarian company Kristaly is interested in improving water and wastewater management and treatment in the municipality of Kukes, Albania. Wastewater treatment and sewerage service in this country continue to lag behind the sector development objectives, according to the latest reports. The mayor of Kukes Bashkim Shehu met the representatives of the Hungarian company Kristaly […]
New 20 MW biomass plant for district heating in Šabac in 2018
The district heating system in the city of Šabac is to be supplied from a 20 MW biomass plant, said the city’s energy manager Slobodan Jerotić for BGEN. Biomass will replace natural gas, which is three to four times more expensive. The project will be realized as a public-private partnership. District heating company Toplane Šabac […]
REACH project proposes steps to tackle energy poverty in SEE
It is estimated that more than 30% of households in South-Eastern Europe (SEE) live in energy poverty. The REACH project implemented by NGOs from four countries in SEE provides EU and SEE decision-makers with policy recommendations and empowers households to save energy. While between 10% and 25% of EU citizens live in energy poverty, the […]