September 20-27, 2014       USAID/USEA Southeast Europe Distribution System Operator (DSO) Security of Supply Study Tour to the U.S. Columbus, OH; Houston, TX; and Washington, DC 

Albania

Albania gets $150 mln from World Bank for power sector- (Reuters) The World Bank gave Albania $150 million on Friday to help it upgrade electricity distribution and transmission after Albania settled a dispute with Czech CEZ group and retook control of the electricity distribution monopoly…

World Bank Negotiates $150 million Albanian Energy Sector Recovery- (Balkans) The World Bank and the Government of Albania successfully completed negotiations for a $150 million Power Reform and Recovery Project…

World Bank Negotiates $150 million Energy Sector Recovery Program for Albania- (The World Bank) The World Bank and the Government of Albania successfully completed negotiations for a $150 million Power Reform and Recovery Project.  The proposed World Bank-assisted program will support Albania’s power sector reforms, particularly efforts to improve the reliability of the electricity supply and the financial viability of the sector…

Czech Republic supports dispute-settling deal between Albania, CEZ- (Shanghai Daily) The Embassy of the Czech Republic to Albania Monday expressed support to the agreement reached between the Albanian government and Czech company CEZ, which is the owner of the Electricity Distribution Company in Albania, on disputes, according to Albanian Telegraphic Agency…

Bulgaria  

Bulgaria state energy watchdog to hold sitting on service level agreement of water and sewerage sector companies- (Focus) Sofia. State Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (SEWRC) will hold a closed sitting on the service level agreement of companies operating in the water and sewerage sector…

Project for 7^th reactor at Bulgaria’s Kozloduy NPP designed in a way that does not allow staling: ex-minister- (Focus) Sofia. “Project for the construction of 7th reactor at the Kozloduy NPP is designed in a way that does not allow stealing,” said Bulgaria’s former minister of economy and energy Dragomir Stoynev speaking after the plenum of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), FOCUS News Agency reporter said…

Bulgarian Energy Holding, Gazprom Sign Deal for Future Black Sea Gas Transport via South Stream-(Publics.bg) The state-owned Bulgarian Energy Holding (BEH) will sign “within days” a contract with Russia’s Gazprom that would allow the Russian company to transport gas from any Bulgarian Black Sea reserves which could be discovered in the future via the planned South Stream Pipeline, ex-economy and energy minister Dragomir Stoinev stated in an interview for bTV…

Bulgarian Constitutional Court hands down victory to solar industry- (PV Magazine) Bulgaria installed just 1.18 MW in the first half of 2014, confirming the country's PV sector stall. Amidst the gloom, a court ruling last week has provided a needed ray of light…

EC Alerts Bulgarian Energy Holding to Suspected Anti-Trust Law Breach- (Novinite) The European Commission has sent a Statement of Objections to the Bulgarian Energy Holding concerning suspected abuse of dominance on the domestic wholesale electricity market…

Bulgarian Energy Accused by EU of Imposing Power-Resale Curbs- (Business Week) Bulgarian Energy Holding EAD was accused by the European Union’s antitrust arm of imposing restrictions on where its power may be resold by energy traders…

There is serious problem with the purchase of electricity from renewable energy sources in Bulgaria: economist- (Focus) Sofia. “There is a serious problem with the purchase of green energy in Bulgaria…

Bulgaria’s Minister: Third countries’ access to South Stream key condition of its success- (Standart) SOFIA, August 12. /ITAR-TASS/. Third countries' access to the South Stream gas pipeline is a key condition of its success, Bulgaria's interim Minister of Economy and Energy Vassil Shtonov said on Tuesday…

Bulgarian Caretaker Government Sets Ground for Energy Regulator Reform- (Publics.bg) Vice-PM Ekaterina Zaharieva however stressed that the practice of often management shifts at the SEWRC should be stopped in order to guarantee a coherent energy regulation, citing complaints from energy producers and distributors that the regulator’s decisions often contradict the current legislation and seem unrelated to the situation in the Bulgarian energy sector…

Energy rationing in Bulgaria seems very realistic: BEF Chairman- (Focus) Sofia. “Danger of energy rationing seems too realistic, if not capitalized companies that deal with maintenance of the electric infrastructure, namely transmission and distribution networks”…

The BGN 50M monthly loss of Bulgaria’s National Electric Company may lead to power cuts- (Standart News)  Bulgaria's National Electric Company is losing BGN 50 million per month from the new lower electricity prices, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Policy and Regional Development Ekaterina Zaharieva told Nova TV…

CEZ Bulgaria to cut power supply to 21 settlements at ESO’s request- (Focus) Sofia. At the request of Bulgaria’s Electricity System Operator (ESO) from 7 a.m. until 7:30 a.m. on August 17, 2014 there will be planned power cuts in 21 settlements in the municipalities of Dupnitsa, Boboshevo, Kocherinovo, and Sapareva Banya, the press office of CEZ Bulgaria power distribution company announced…

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia/ Republika srpska: HPP Dabar construction on time, HPPs power gen stable- (Serbia Energy) Prime Minister of Republika Srpska Zeljka Cvijanovic said in Trebinje that the company “HPPs on Trebisnijica” achieves good production results and a significant profit, and that has a very important role in the overall “Electric Power Industry” system, as well as in the economic life of Republika Srpska…

EBRD Considering a Loan for a New Cogeneration Plant in Bosnia- (Energetika)

Bosnia’s Banovici mine seeks consultant for 300 MW TPP project- (PowerMarket) SARAJEVO (Bosnia and Herzegovina), August 7 – Bosnian state-controlled brown coal mine Banovici said it is seeking a consultant to help find a strategic partner to finance and build the 300 megawatt (MW) Unit 1 of the Banovici thermal power plant (TPP)… 

Croatia  

Croatia asks court for three temporary solutions to dispute with Hungary’s MOL- (Portfolio.hu) Vrdoljak and solicitors representing the Croatian state have on the first day presented arguments which, in their view, verify that the contract signed with Hungarian fuels group MOL on its management rights in INA and INA’s gas business is unlawful and therefore requested the arbitration court to find temporary solutions for the current situation. ..

Croatia urges court to ban MOL’s sale of INA’s stake- (Budapest Business Journal) The Croatian government has turned to the arbitration court of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) in Paris, asking the court to issue a temporary ban on the sale of Hungarian oil and gas company MOL’s shares in Croatian peer INA, Croatian online daily Vecernji List announced today…

Croatian eco min oks plans to add CHP unit at TPP Zagreb- ZAGREB (Croatia), August 14 (SeeNews) - Croatia's environment ministry said it has determined the project for the construction of a combined heat and power (CHP) unit at gas-fired thermal power plant (TPP) Zagreb is acceptable from an environmental point of view provided certain measures are taken…  

Kosovo

Kosovo: Serb returnees get electricity supply back- (In Serbia) ZAC – Serb returnees in the village of Zac, Kosovo-Metohija municipality of Istok, got electricity supplies back on Tuesday afternoon after a week-long outage, Serb local Velko Komatovic stated on Wednesday…

Accident in TPP Kosovo A Increases Kosovo’s Dependency on Electricity Imports- (Energetika) But these figures are based on the most optimistic scenario for overcoming the energy crisis, assuming that TPP Kosovo A will start operating by the end of December 2014, KEDS added.In the last seven months…

Kosovar KEDS Puts into Operation Three New Overhead Power Lines- (Energetika) The company added that the new overhead lines had considerably decreased network losses.Until now, KEDS has put into operation five new overhead power lines. By the end of this year, the company should put into…

Macedonia

Macedonia seeks supervision of dam safety work at 36.4-MW St. Petka, 82-MW Kozjak- (Hydro World) Macedonia utility AD Elektrarni na Makedonija (Elem) seeks bids for technical supervision of dam safety civil work to be performed at the 36.4-MW St. Petka and 82-MW Kozjak hydroelectric projects in Macedonia. Bids are due August 21…

Macedonian HPP Vrutok Modernized and Back Online- (Energetika)  In the past 18 months, all four units of HPP Vrutok were completely modernized. After the overhaul, the total installed capacity of HPP Vrutok increased from 150 MW to 166 MW. This will increase the annual…

Montenegro

Montenegro Press Review- August 13, 2014- (Balkan Insight) New fees for the electicity transmission…

Electricity Consumption in Montenegro Rises in July- (Energetika) On average the households paid 34.2 euros for electricity, which is 11% more than in June. The lowest electricity consumption was recorded in the town of Mojkovac, where the average electricity bill was 23.8 e…

Romania

Romania’s Hidroelectrica to open offices in Budapest and Belgrade- (Romania Insider) Romanian state-owned electricity producer Hidroelectrica will open an office in Hungary’s capital Budapest, in September this year, aiming to expand its energy sales on the European market, said Remus Borza, the company’s legal administrator…

Romania’s Nuclearelectrica will set up a new joint venture for nuclear reactors- (Balkans) Romania's state-run nuclear power producer Nuclearelectrica on Monday said it will set up a new joint venture to oversee the construction of two additional reactors at its Cernavoda plant and wants to sell off a 51 percent-interest in the future company to a private investor…

CEZ Predicts Further Drop in Power Prices as Profit Declines- (Business Week) CEZ AS, the largest Czech utility, predicted a further drop in European electricity rates after reporting a 32 percent decline in second-quarter profit on lower prices, reduced income from its Romanian wind farm and a cut in output…

Romania plans Cernavoda- (World Nuclear) Nuclearelectrica is looking for a private investor to take a majority stake in the joint venture it plans to create to manage the expansion of the Cernavoda nuclear power plant…

PM Ponta pays visit to Ocean Endeavour offshore drilling rig in the Black Sea- (ACTmedia) Prime Minister Victor Ponta on Tuesday paid a visit to Ocean Endeavour offshore drilling rig in Romania's deep water sector of the Black Sea, where ExxonMobil and Petrom are conducting exploration drills for natural gas deposits, informs a Government press release…

Renewable energy units up almost 20-fold in Romania in four years- (Romania Insider) The number of renewable energy production units in Romania reached 559 last year, from just 31 at the end of 2009…

As many as 559 units were generating green energy in Romania, in 2013- (ACTmedia) With as many as 559 units generating green energy in 2013, the total domestic production of energy from renewable sources stood at over 22.3 TWh, with an installed power of 4,350 MW, according to the report made by Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Attila Korodi, on Thursday, at the 22nd edition of the Focus Energetic conferences…

Romania’s Nuclearelectrica profit falls 69 pct y/y- (Reuters) Romania's state-owned nuclear plant Nuclearelectrica recorded a net profit of 60.4 million lei ($18.2 million) in the first half of the year, down 69 percent on the year, due to a drop in sale prices and higher taxes, it said on Thursday…

Romania to set up joint venture for Cernavoda nuclear reactor project-(Business Review) State-run nuclear power producer Nuclearelectrica on Monday said it will set up a new joint venture to oversee the construction of two additional reactors at its Cernavoda plant and wants to sell off a 51 percent-interest in the future company to a private investor…

Serbia

South Stream in Serbia to be completed on time- Srbijagas CEO- (Itar Tass) BELGRADE, August 07. /ITAR-TASS/. The first 30 kilometres of the South Stream pipeline section will be laid through Serbia before the end of the year, the director of Serbia’s state-owned gas provider Srbijagas, Dusan Bajatovic, said on Thursday…

Strip mine field, shut down by floods, resumes production- (b92) BELGRADE -- Coal production resumed on Thursday in the Veliki Crljeni coal seam of the Kolubara mining basin, which was heavily affected by the May flooding…

Serbian police to probe privatization of state oil firm NIS- (Reuters) BELGRADE - Serbian police are to investigate the 2008 privatisation of state oil company NIS , now majority-owned by Russia's Gazprom Neft , the interior ministry said…

Special team formed to investigate NIS sale- (In Serbia) NIS was privatised in late 2008 when Russia’s Gazprom Neft bought 51 percent of the company, while the remaining 49 percent of shares were distributed for free to the Serbian people… 

Serbia Probes NIS Sale to Gazprom Neft Amid UAE Plans- (Bloomberg) Serbia opened an investigation into the sale of Naftna Industrija Srbija AD to OAO Gazprom Neft (SIBN) five years after the government signed a 30-year energy pact with Russia that ceded control over its oil and gas market…

Serbia probes sale of refining unit to Gazprom Neft- (Hydrocarbon Processing) Serbia sealed the agreement to sell its only refiner amid a gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine in late 2008 and early the following year. It sold a 51% stake in NIS to Gazprom Neft for 400 million euros ($536 million) in 2009, when the company had 993.8 million euros in capital…

“Privatization investigation could damage ties with Russia”- (B92) BELGRADE—Boris Tadić has said that an investigation into the privatization of NIS, announced this week, “may jeopardize our relations with Russia…”

Armenia 

Electricity generation in Armenia drops by 3.25 percent- (ARKA) YEREVAN, August 8th. Electricity generation in Armenia in January-June 2014 amounted to 3.74 billion kWh, down from 3.86 billion kWh (3.25 percent decline) in the first six months of 2013, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Yervand Zakharian told a news conference today…

Government not to reconsider electricity price in next 12-24 months, minister says- (ARKA) YEREVAN, August 8. The Armenian government is not going to reconsider the current electricity price in the next 12 or 24 months, energy and natural resources minister Yervand Zakharyan said today…

Russia to provide Armenia with ‘nuclear island’- (ARKA) YEREVAN, August 8. Russia will provide Armenia with “nuclear island” as its contribution to the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Armenia, Armenian energy and natural resources minister Yervand Zakarian said today…

Major repair to extend Armenian NPP’s service life to begin in 2017 spring- (ARKA) YEREVAN, August 8. A major repair of the Armenian nuclear power plant estimated to cost around $300 million is scheduled to start in 2017 spring in order to extend its service life until 2026, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Yervand Zakharyan told reporters today. He said the work is scheduled to take six months…

540-megawatt gas turbine power plant to be built in Armenia- (ARKA) YEREVAN, August 14.  A new, 540-megawatt gas turbine power plant will be built in Armenia, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Yervand Zakharyan said Thursday at a regular Cabinet meeting…

New Power Plant Planned In Armenia- (Azatutyun) A little-known foreign company has offered to build a new and big thermal power plant in Armenia, the government said on Thursday. Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamian’s cabinet made the announcement after approving the basic terms of a corresponding contract which is due to be signed with the company called Anaklia IEP Holding…

Azerbaijan    

Azerbaijan increases electricity production– (Trend) In January-July 2014 Azerbaijan produced 12.53 billion kw/hours of commodity electricity, which is 3.5 percent more than the same period of…

Azerbaijan’s SOCAR to sell stake in Turkey’s Star media group- (Reuters) Aug 8 - Azeri state energy company SOCAR is in talks with Turkish businessman Fettah Tamince to sell its 50 percent stake in Turkey's Star media group, SOCAR Turkey told Reuters on Friday…

Main energy producer of Azerbaijan increases electricity production- (AzerNews) "Azerenergy" JSC has produced more than 13 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in January-July, according to a statement posted on the official website of the JSC…

Tony Blair lends face to Azeri pipeline- (Maltatoday) Azerbaijan’s pompous kleptocrat Ilham Aliyev, whose 11-year-old son Heydar owns nine luxury mansions set on the Palm Jumeirah worth $44 million, has appointed British former Prime Minister Tony Blair as an advisor to a consortium which is lobbying for a pipeline to transport Azerbaijani gas to Europe…

Azerbaijan oil and condensate output falls Jan-July 2014- (Reuters) BAKU, Aug 13 - Crude oil and condensate production in Azerbaijan fell to 23.535 million tonnes in January-July from 24.098 million tonnes in the same period last year, a source at the State Statistics Committee said, driven by declines at fields operated by BP…

Shah Deniz increases average daily gas production- (AzerNews) The average daily gas production at Azerbaijan's giant Shah Deniz gas condensate field in the Caspian Sea is over 27 million cubic meters…

SOCAR reconstructs main gas pipeline in Azerbaijan- (Trend.az) The State Oil Company of Azerbaijan plans to complete the reconstruction of the first line of the Gazimagomed-Gazakh main gas pipeline within four years, SOCAR reported…

SOCAR drilling new well at Saadan field- (AzerNews) Azerbaijan's state energy company SOCAR has started the drilling of a new well at the Saadan onshore oil field, SOCAR said on August 13…

Georgia  

JSC Georgian Energy Development Fund is Arranging the consulting day- (GEDF) JSC Georgian Energy Development Fund is Arranging the consulting day for “ identification and study of unexplored potential of the Catchment basin of Rioni river”consultant service purchase.  JSC Georgian Energy Development Fund on 11 August, 2014 announces the consultation day for all the interested individuals…

President of Georgia to attend International Caspian Energy Forum – 2014- (Caspian Energy) Giorgi Margvelashvili, President of Georgia, has congratulated the readership and the editorial staff of the Caspian Energy International Media Group on the 15th anniversary of the activity carried out on the global information markets…

Moldova  

Natural gas exports to Republic of Moldova could start from mid-August- (ACT Media) Shipments of natural gas to the Republic of Moldova could begin in the second half of August for a price in line with the competitive market, somewhere around 80 lei per MWh, president of the National Energy Regulatory Authority (ANRE) Nicolae Havrilet told the 22nd edition of the Focus on Energy Conferences this Thursday…

Turkey 

Boydak reacts to cancellation of energy projects- (Todays Zaman) Boydak Holding, which had the licenses for several of its energy projects revoked last week, issued a response on Monday in which it expressed its commitment to continue in the sector…

Turkey Generates New Action Plans In Case Of Gas Cut- (Daily Sabah) ANKARA – BOTAŞ, the state-owned Turkish Pipeline Corporation (BOTAŞ), is planning to institute precautionary measures in order to guarantee energy supply during the winter months in case Russian gas flowing through Ukraine is cut off…

Nine miners trapped after Turkish mine collapse- media reports- (Reuters) ISTABUL Aug 12- Nine miners were trapped in a Turkish coal mine in the Black Sea province of Zonguldak on Tuesday after part of the structure collapsed, state  broadcaster TRT Haber reported…

Unlicensed PV sector could propel Turkey to 10 GW by 2023- (PV Magazine) Senior energy experts in the country expect a bright future for Turkey's solar industry, driven largely by the unlicensed PV segment…

Low Oil Prices Can Cut Turkey’s Foreign Trade Deficit- (Daily Sabah) ISTANBUL – The price for a barrel of crude Brent petrol in international markets has dropped to its lowest level this year. Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA), various economists have commented on the effect of the decrease in oil prices on Turkey's current account deficit, inflation and the monetary policies of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT)…

Turkey Striving to Realize Energy Dream- (Oil Price) With Ukraine and the Middle East currently engulfed in turmoil, Turkey is trying to play a new energy-export card and, in the process, strengthen its position as a regional energy hub…

9 rescued from mine collapse in Turkey- (Houston Chronicle) ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Nine miners were rescued from a collapsed mine on Tuesday after being trapped inside for several hours, Turkey's state-run news agency said…

Turkish baseload power prices lower, traders eye startup of new 600 MW coal plant- (Platts) Turkish baseload power for September delivery was assessed Lira 2.75/MWh lower week-on-week at Lira 169.50/MWh ($78.31/MWh, Eur58.69/MWh) by Platts Monday, as the market remains demand-driven with temperatures forecast to cool next month, while there is some anticipation ahead of the integration of a new 600 MW coal-fired power plant to the grid by the end of August…

Electricity distribution firms in danger of seizure- (Today’s Zaman) Electricity distribution firms have faced troubles following their privatization, as the illegal use of electricity has emerged as a major problem in Turkey, particularly in the lower-income regions of eastern and southeastern Anatolia…

Turkey ‘urges’ US to permit KRG oil sales- (Hurriyet Daily News) Ankara has called on Washington to permit Iraqi Kurdish oil sales to support them in their battle against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) militants, Financial Times (FT) reported on Aug. 14…

Turkey ups Russian gas purchases amid drought- (Todays Zaman) Turkey increased its purchase of Russian gas by 9 percent in the first half of 2014 year-on-year, exceeding a 2.5 percent rise in the amount of gas purchased by all other European customer countries in the same period, an increase resulting from greater demand for natural gas in Turkey's electricity production…

Turkey’s Electricity Consumption Hits Record High- (Daily Sabah) ANTALYA – Turkey's daily electricity use hit a record high on Tuesday with the country consuming 818 million kilowatt-hours during the day, the Turkish Energy Minister said Wednesday…

Ukraine 

Conflict-hit coal sector casts shadow on Ukraine electricity market- (Reuters) Intense fighting in eastern Ukraine has forced coal mines to cut production or close entirely, imperilling the country's electricity market and potentially forcing the government to cut exports or limit consumption…

Leaders From Russia, Ukraine and EU Agree on Gas and Trade Talks- (The Moscow Times) The presidents of Russia, Ukraine and the European Commission have agreed to hold talks on disputes over gas and an EU-Ukraine free trade agreement, in parallel with efforts to stabilize the security situation in Ukraine, the EU said…

Russia, Ukraine, EU leaders to hold talks on gas, trade problems- (Reuters) The presidents of Russia, Ukraine and the European Commission have agreed to hold talks on issues over gas supply and an EU-Ukraine trade agreement, in parallel with efforts to stabilise the security situation in Ukraine, the EU said on Thursday…

Ukraine plans talks with Western firms to operate gas pipelines- (Platts) Ukraine will shortly start negotiations with Western energy companies over creating a consortium to operate the country's natural gas pipelines and underground gas storage facilities, Naftogaz Ukrayiny, the national energy company, said Friday in a report…

To save energy, Ukraine will have to adopt European ways- (Kyiv Post) Although much poorer than the average European Union family, Ukraine's households consume more than twice as much energy…

Activ Solar says not aware of new green power rates in Crimea- (SeeNews) - Aug 14, 2014 - Vienna-based Activ Solar GmbH, a solar developer that has several large-scale solar parks in Crimea, said it has not been informed of the introduction of any new incentives for renewables on the peninsula…

Wind, solar parks in Crimea accept lower power rates- report- (SeeNews) - Aug 11, 2014 - Crimea’s solar and wind power producers have agreed to sell their output at some RUB 3.42 (USD 0.095/EUR 0.07) per kWh, which represents less than a quarter of what they got when Crimea was still part of Ukraine…

Zakarpatoblenergo borrows USD 2.3m from Fido Bank- (SeeNews) – Aug 14, 2014 – Ukrainian energy distribution company Zakarpatoblenergo has drawn a loan of UAH 30 million (USD 2.3m/EUR 1.7m) from local lender Fido Bank, information published on the country’s public procurement website showed today…

Slovak gas pipeline to Ukraine to start tests on Aug 15- (Reuters) PRAGUE Aug 14. Slovak gas pipeline operator Eustream will begin testing a pipeline on Aug. 15 that is expected to begin carrying gas from the European Union to Ukraine starting in September, the company said on Thursday…

This program is made possible by the support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents are the responsibility of the United States Energy Association and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.