Government of Serbia adopts changes to Law on Energy

The Government of Serbia adopted the changes to the Law on Energy including numerous novelties.

The amendments include the return of nuclear energy to the Serbian energy sector, allowing end consumers to become active buyers, the introduction of dynamic electricity tariffs and abolishment of net metering for prosumers in the household sector.

The bill defines new business activities in energy, certification for installers of renewable energy facilities. It facilitates the creation of a balancing capacity mechanism, regulates the balancing market and balancing responsibility, and creates conditions for electricity market coupling with neighboring countries.

The Ministry of Mining and Energy published the draft law in August and invited all stakeholders to participate in public consultations, which finished on September 10.

According to the report on the public consultation, the ministry accepted some of the suggestions.

One was to clarify the abolition of net metering for prosumers in the household sector. The draft envisaged the abolition of both net metering and net billing by December 31, 2026.

Net metering is set to end by December 31, 2026

One of the provisions could even be interpreted as canceling net metering on January 1, 2026. At the same time, it wasn’t obvious which type of calculation would be applied when there is no more net metering.

According to the ministry, net metering will be applied to existing prosumers until the end of their photovoltaic systems’ operating life. Households eligible to become prosumers by December 31, 2026, would also be in the net metering scheme.

Everyone that acquires the status after December 31, 2026, won’t be included in net metering, the ministry said.

The implementation of the new law would clarify what type of calculation would be applied to prosumers after net metering is canceled.

The change is part of the transposition of the European regulations and it has been agreed with the Energy Community Secretariat, the ministry pointed out.

Active buyer status for businesses

Firms with a prosumer status would have the opportunity to become active buyers.

An active buyer is defined as an end consumer, or a group of end consumers acting together, using or storing electricity produced in their facilities, independently selling it, or participating in flexibility services or energy efficiency measures, provided that the said activities are not their core commercial or professional activity.

The option allows companies to produce green energy for self-consumption and use it to reduce electricity costs and avoid paying CO2 taxes in Serbia and for exports to the European Union.