Montenegro starts phasing out inefficient incandescent light bulbs
Montenegro has launched a phase-out of traditional filament incandescent light bulbs starting with the highest wattage – 100-watt conventional incandescent light bulbs and above, as part of a new legal framework introducing the EU’s ecodesign requirements for a range of energy-using and energy-related products. The rulebook to progressively ban conventional incandescent light bulbs in favor […]
Erste Bank gets EUR 5 million loan from EBRD to on-lend for home energy efficiency
Erste Bank has become the first Serbian bank to receive financing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for home energy efficiency through a RSD 600 million (equivalent to EUR 5 million) loan for on-lending to residential clients. Erste Bank’s home energy efficiency loans are aimed at citizens planning to invest in energy […]
Petition handed to EBRD calling on IFIs to drop “destructive hydropower in the Balkans”
Representatives from the Save the Blue Heart of Europe campaign to save the continent’s last undammed rivers have handed in a petition endorsed globally by more than 120,000 people, calling on international development banks to rein in financial support for hydropower projects in the Balkans, according to a press release from CEE Bankwatch Network, one […]
Greek energy exchange founded, launch expected in mid-2019
The Hellenic Energy Exchange has been founded as part of the EU’s target model to create a single energy market, Greece’s Environment and Energy Ministry said. The Greek energy exchange is expected to launch operations in mid-2019, the Greek Observer reported, citing an announcement from the ministry. The country’s first energy exchange will be owned […]
Zsuzsanna Hargitai starts as new EBRD director for Western Balkans
Zsuzsanna Hargitai has taken over as the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s (EBRD) new director for the Western Balkans. Based in Belgrade, she will also head the EBRD’s operations in Serbia. In Serbia, Zsuzsanna Hargitai will succeed Daniel Berg, who is leaving the EBRD after almost 25 years of distinguished service, according to a […]
Sofia launches work on Green City Action Plan – EBRD
Sofia has started working on its Green City Action Plan (GCAP) to identify environmental challenges and actions to address them, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), which is helping the Bulgarian capital produce the GCAP under its Green Cities Framework (GrCF), said in a news release. A coalition of nine doctor and health […]
Albania gets fresh EUR 12 million loan for strategic Dam Safety Project
Albania has drawn an additional EUR 12 million in lending for its Dam Safety Project to safeguard hydroelectric dams and extend the operating life of hydropower plants on two rivers, including the Drin Cascade, which accounts for the bulk of the country’s electricity generation. The three hydropower plants (HPPs) in the Drin Cascade – Fierza, […]
OEDAS inks finance deals worth USD 330 million to upgrade distribution network
Turkey’s electricity distribution company Osmangazi Elektrik Dagitim (OEDAS), a subsidiary of Zorlu Energy Group, has signed project finance agreements with three international finance institutions (IFI) for Turkish lira-denominated lending worth USD 330 million to finance electricity distribution investments. The lending from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), IFC, a member of the World […]