Serbian government adopts negotiating position for chapter 15 – energy

The Government of Serbia has adopted the negotiating position for chapter 15 – energy. The document is part of the preparation for the intergovernmental conference on the country’s accession to the European Union.

The criteria for chapter 15 have been met, so it is no longer an obstacle to open cluster 4 in negotiations with the EU, the Ministry of Mining and Energy said on its website.

In the sector of crude oil and petroleum products, the conditions were met when the government adopted the action plan for the establishment of mandatory reserves late last month. The second criterion was the adoption of an action plan for the reorganization of state-owned gas company Srbijagas, which will enable the unbundling of activities in the sector and the harmonization of the operations of gas enterprises with EU regulations and domestic laws.

Obstacles to Chapter 15 concerned mandatory crude oil reserves, unbundling of Srbijagas and the adoption of energy laws

Minister of Mining and Energy Zorana Mihajlović said an important step in harmonizing domestic energy legislation with the EU was made with the adoption of the Law on Renewable Energy Sources and the Law on Energy Efficiency and Rational Energy Consumption, and by changing the Law on Energy. It brought Serbia’s regulatory framework in line with the EU directives, she added.

Chapter 15 of the accession negotiations covers energy. It is a part of the Green Agreement and Sustainable Connectivity negotiating cluster while the work of the negotiating group for energy is coordinated by the Ministry of Mining and Energy.

The negotiating position for the energy chapter represents the candidate country’s achievement in the harmonization with the acquis communautaire, the program of future harmonization, as well as an overview of existing and future administrative capacities for harmonization.