In the residence of the Norwegian ambassador in Belgrade, a ceremony was held today on the occasion of the completion of the “Nordic Green Project – Sustainable Solutions for Serbia” initiative. Ambassadors of the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden), Minister of European Integration, Tanja Miščević and Minister of Mining and Energy, Dubravka Đedović assessed this initiative as successful.
Minister of European Integration, Tanja Miščević, thanked the Nordic countries for the assistance they provide to Serbia in the process of green transition, as well as for the experiences they shared, particularly at local level.
Local self-governments are a place where green transition takes place, it is lawfully and strategically regulated at the central level, but the implementation is at the local level. That is where wastewater treatment companies are established, where sewage pipes are installed and where new funds for promotion of this area are requested from”, Miščević said.
Second important thing is green and circular economy, she added and emphasised that the follow-up of the projects related to European integration process is expected.
“They also help us in fulfilment of obligations from the open chapter 27 i.e. the entire open cluster that refers to this field. I would like to recall December 2021 when the entire cluster on energy, transport, trans-European networks and environmental protection was opened; it is now our great task to implement all that we have said”, Miščević said.
Đedović said that the Nordic countries showed once again that they were an important partner for Serbia in the process of energy transition, both through investments into renewable energy sources (RES) and advisory, through this initiative in the field of reforms in the energy sector and of energy companies.
“In Serbia, several projects related to RES are either underway or at the initial phase, primarily in the field of wind and solar, in which the Nordic companies also participate. We wish to remain their good partner and to make our country a destination that they can recognise as a destination for new investments, primarily those in green energy”, the minister said.
She emphasised that Serbia has a lot to learn from its Nordic partners as they were pioneers in implementing the transformation of their energy systems in different ways and in different forms.
“Today they are manufacturing key equipment that is important for RES and for their integration. Of course, there are differences between our energy systems, but when we talk about Norway, it is an interesting model for us as someone that we intensively cooperate with in the sphere of our energy sector. They are the owners of their energy companies and resources and they efficiently manage them to the benefit of the citizens and the state. This is something that we strive for”, said Đedović.
The first results of the process of transition to RES are expected this year, the minister said and added that the drafting of strategic documents is underway, which will be an important milestone for Serbia in the upcoming period.
“These are primarily integrated national energy and climate plan, as well as strategy for the development of Serbian energy sector for 2040, with projections for 2050. In energy we cannot make short-term plans, it takes years, and we focus on projections for 25 and more years”, said Đedović.
She added that the amendment of the Law on RES is in preparation and that the amendments will enable the implementation of auctions for new capacities from RES.
It is planned, as she said, that the amendments to the Law be adopted in the following weeks, because Serbia wants to provide its investors with stable and predictable legislative framework.
At this moment, the minister pointed out, excluding large hydropower plants, Serbia’s network has 581 megawatt of capacity from RES and, with the new law, these capacities are expected to increase by 2.5 times in the upcoming few years.
“Already in April we plan to launch new auctions for 400 new megawatts from wind and solar energy; an auction plan is also in preparation for the next three years where we expect at least 1000 new megawatts from RES again in the following few years”, Đedović said.
In addition to the investments, great progress is also reflected in the increased interest of the citizens, she added and said that the number of prosumers is expected to increase in the upcoming period from 20,000 households to 80,000 or even 100,000; the planned allocation for this, in addition to current RSD 2.6 billion, is expected to be additional cca EUR 70 million, already this year.
Swedish ambassador to Serbia, Annika Ben David said that a large project was concluded today, through which Serbia had an opportunity to learn from the experience of Nordic countries and what Sweden presented was wastewater treatment and recycling.
“We joined two Swedish companies operating in Serbia, company Tetrapak and company Ikea, which presented the ways in which you can make recycling simple, which is very important. In Nordic countries, only one percent of waste ends up on dumpsites because we found the way to create new energy from waste and also to create new jobs. As many as 98 buses in Sweden work on biogas obtained from waste processing”, Ben David said.
Norwegian ambassador in Serbia, Jørn Eugen Gjelstad said that it was encouraging to see through this initiative that, apart from the institutions, the citizens were also interested in learning from Nordic countries and that Norway would continue to support Serbia on this path.
“Higher awareness has been achieved, people became aware of how important this is and, if we do not work on this now, the changes will be irreversible. We are not talking only about environmental sustainability or climate change and public health; we are talking about a reasonable economic choice, because Serbia, alike Norway, is not a member of the EU, but it is very present in the European market”, Gjelstad said.
The biggest challenge Gjelstad mentioned was the transformation of old energy sector, which has been for a very long time based on coal combustion; its transformation is expensive, it requires expertise and time, but it is something that needs to be done.
“In Norway, our great advantage is high hydro potential, which is something that Serbia also has. We have wind potential, but Serbia also has potential for generating power from wind; unlike Norway, Serbia has high potential for the development of solar energy”, Gjelstad underlined.
Source: Tanjug
