USEA Upcoming Events

February 4-5, 2015: USAID/USEA Southeast Europe Distribution System Operator (DSO) Security of Supply Working Group Meeting Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

February 6, 2015: USAID/USEA Southeast Europe Cooperation Initiative Transmission System Planning Project (SECI) Working Group Meeting Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

March 2015: USAID/USEA Black Sea Regional Transmission System Planning (BSTP) Project Working Group Meeting Bucharest, Romania

Albania to invest 50 mln USD in electric distribution system – (Global Post) Albania will invest more than 50 million U.S. dollars in the electric distribution system in 2015, Albanian Daily News reported on Thursday…

Albania praised for efforts on electricity bill collection – (dtt-net) European Energy Community officials have praised Albanian socialist government on tough measures for collection of electricity bills across the country aimed at decreasing enormous financial loses marred by massive theft by consumers…

Albanian Minister: Reforms in Energy Sector Already Showing Positive Upturn – (Energetika) As we previously reported HERE, the Albanian energy sector was facing bankruptcy, but according to Gjiknuri the imposed reforms are already showing a positive upturn. Read also ‘Albanian Government Gives Green…

Albania opposition calls for reduction of electricity tax – (dtt-net) Albania’s main opposition party called today for reduction of the tax on electricity for 14 percent, accusing the ruling socialist government of failing to keep promises made to country's citizens over the issue…

Albania to adopt law on energy, electricity liberalization – (dtt-net) Albanian parliament is expected to adopt soon a draft-law on energy liberalization, including amendments on renewable energy and energy efficiency…

Director discusses priorities with Albanian PM and key energy decision-makers – (Energy Community) Director Kopač and Deputy Director Buschle met with Albanian Prime Minister, Mr Edi Rama, Minister of Energy and Industry, Mr Damian Gjiknuri, and Chairman of the Parliamentary committee responsible for energy, Mr Eduard Shalsi, on 26 January…

Bulgaria

Bulgaria Energy Minister Triggers Inspection at Energy Distributors – (Novinite) Detailed inspections are to be carried out at all three electricity distribution companies operating in Bulgaria, the country's Energy Minister Temenuzhka Petkova has said…

Bulgaria energy minister: Govt not to allow repeat of situation of two years ago – (Focus) “Bulgarian government will not allow a repeat of the scenario we witnessed two years ago. The state will join all forces and use all mechanisms to check and protect the interests of the Bulgaria consumers,” Bulgarian Minister of Energy Temenuzhka Petkova announced at an extraordinary briefing, FOCUS News Agency reporter said…

Bulgarian government intervenes over double electricity bills in Varna area – (The Sofia Globe) Bulgaria’s energy ministry and electricity distribution company Energo-Pro have agreed that clients of the company will get extra time to pay their January electricity bills, after several thousand got double bills due on February 10.  Ironically, it appears that the reason that the company’s clients got double bills was that Energo-Pro was trying to keep to a rule on a 31-day metering period…

The view from Sofia: Bulgaria’s energy security needs to gain prominence – (The Sofia Globe) There’s this thing about peripheries. They are either peaceful and godforsaken (and thus ignored) or they are volatile and challenging (and thus stand a higher chance of being taken seriously). Diplomats and analysts spend their time trying to prevent the former from turning into the latter…

Bulgaria's State Electricity Co 'Sells Energy Below Market Prices' – (Novinite) State-owned National Electricity Company (NEK) is suffering losses worth millions of BGN due to "lobbyist" legislation amendments and a practice to sell electricity below market prices, a Bulgarian MP has claimed…

Bulgarian NPP Kozloduy Units Lifespan Extension to Cost 270 Mln Euro – (IENE) The planned extension of the lifespan of the 1,000 MW units 5 and 6 of Bulgaria's sole nuclear power plant (NPP) Kozloduy will cost 270 million euro ($528.5 million), the country's energy ministry said on Thursday…

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Nine apply to build PV plants in Bosnia's Federation, two eye SHPP building permits – (SeeNews Renewables) Nine companies have applied to obtain construction permits for as many photovoltaic (PV) power plants and two have applied to build small hydro power plants in Bosnia’s Muslim-Croat Federation, the entity's energy ministry said on Friday…

Bosnia's EPBiH Plans to Raise Electricity Output By 3.3% in 2015 – (IENE) Bosnian state-controlled power utility Elektroprivreda BiH [SAJ:JPESR] said on Tuesday it plans to raise electricity output by 3.3% to 7,651 GWh in 2015, mostly due to expected shorter downtime at its thermal power plants for regular overhauls…

Bosnia's EPBiH sees 3.3 pct power output increase in 2015 – (Reuters) Bosnia's top power utility Elektroprivreda BiH (EPBiH) said on Tuesday it expects to generate 7,651 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electricity in 2015, or up 3.3 percent from 2014 which was marked by lower hydro power output…

Bosnia’s 11-mo electricity output totals 13,312 GWh – (SeeNews) Bosnia’s net electricity output totalled 13,312 GW in the first eleven months of 2014, data of the country's statistics office indicated on Tuesday…

Croatia

Croatia to Approve 10,000 Projects for Energy Reconstruction of Family Houses – (Energetika) “This year we have provided funds for the approval of up to 10,000 projects for people who wish to have the opportunity of rebuilding their houses,” the minister was quoted as saying in the press release by the…

Kosovo

Kosovo citizens sign petition against electricity price hike – (dtt-net) More than 33,000 Kosovan citizens have signed a petition against increase of electricity prices and sent it to the parliament of the country…

Secretariat publishes policy guidelines on independence of national regulatory authorities – (Energy Community) The Third Energy Package stipulates that the national energy regulator must be legally separated and functionally independent from any private or public entity as well as have autonomy with regard to its budget. Regulatory authorities must also exercise their powers impartially and transparently and steer clear of political influence…

Macedonia

Macedonia gov’t stimulates solar energy – (dtt-net) Macedonian government has put aside a symbolic six million MDK (100,000 Euros) this year to country’s citizens for solar panels, covering around 30 percent of the costs to the householders interested in the renewable energy, for the seventh consecutive year…

Macedonian Govt to Provide Subsidies for Homes Installing Solar Panels – (MINA) The state will allocate MKD 6 million (EUR 100,000) in subsidies to citizens who mount solar collectors in their homes. The Ministry of Economy announced the call on Monday, while citizens can apply up to 31 May 2015…

Macedonia issues first ‘energy passports’ – (dtt-net) Macedonian authorities issued first ‘passports’ to nine buildings for efficient use of energy this week, as authorities are pushing for proper use of energy in construction sector…

Macedonia's Electric Output Grows 5.1% in November 2014 – (Energetika) The output in Macedonia's thermal power plants fell by 30.7%, while the output in hydropower plants grew by 174.6% compared to November 2013.Gross inland consumption of electricity was 154,248 MWh, which is 29…

PM: Macedonia to Start Constructing Gas Network for Households in End of 2015 – (Energetika) The Prime Minister explained that the project is about a so-called secondary gasification that will bring gas into every home. ʺWe are working on the gasification of the whole state,ʺ Gruevski said, and mention…

Montenegro

Work starts on Montenegro-Italy undersea cable – (Turkish Weekly) The long-awaited construction of an underwater electrical cable that will connect Italy and Montenegro has started on the Italian side of the Adrtiatic…

Montenegro's CGES Gets Permit for Reconstruction of 110/35 kV Transformer Station – (Energetika) Montenegro's Ministry of Sustainable Development and Tourism has issued a construction permit to the electricity transmission system operator CGES (Crnogorski Elektroprenosni Sistem) for the reconstruction…

Montenegro's CGES gets permit to upgrade 110/35 kV Niksic transformer station – (SeeNews) Montenegrin majority state-owned power transmission system operator Crnogorski Elektroprenosni Sistem (CGES) [MNG:PREN] has obtained a construction permit for the upgrade of a 110/35 kV transformer station in the western city of Niksic, data from the ministry of sustainable development and tourism indicated on Thursday…

Montenegro: EPCG Could Construct New Unit of Pljevlja TPP Alone – (Energetika) ʺOur partner, the Italian company A2A, requested the inclusion of a third partner in the completion of the financial structure for the construction of the second unit of the Pljevlja TPP, as one of the models…

Montenegro's EPCG Ready to Start Construction of TPP Pljevlja Unit Without Partner – (IENE) Montenegrin state-controlled power utility EPCG is ready to start the construction of a second unit at thermal power plant (TPP) Pljevlja even if it fails to find a partner by the end of March as planned, deputy prime minister Vujica Lazovic said on Friday…

Romania

Romania Planned New Power Capacities Idle Due to Subdued Demand – (Bloomberg) Romania doesn’t need to invest in new power capacities in the next 10 years as demand will be capped by shrinking industrial production, officials from Fondul Proprietatea SA and consulting firm AT Kearney Inc said…

Romanian power demand growth not seen fast enough to merit big new plants – (Reuters) Electricity demand in Romania is expected to grow by less than 1 percent a year over the next decade, according to an industry study, casting doubt over the country's plans to build big new power plants…

Power Demand in Romania Seen Almost Flat by 2025 – (IENE) Electricity demand in Romania is expected to grow byless than 1% per year until 2025, unless the government takes aproactive approach to encourageconsumption, a study byglobal consultancy A.T. Kearney has indicated…

Romania trading license plan will not restrict suppliers' actions – (ICIS) New proposals issued by Romania’s energy regulator will not restrict electricity suppliers from entering into cross-border import and export transactions, a source with knowledge of the matter told ICIS on Wednesday…

Reuters: Serbia in talks with Romania over Black Sea gas - PM Vucic – (ACT Media) Serbia has held talks with neghbouring Romania about importing natural gas from the Black Sea region, Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday."We have just finished our talks with Romanian PM Victor Ponta about getting the gas from the Romanian part of Black Sea…

Pipeline plan to bring Western gas to Balkans seen closer – (Reuters) Slovak pipeline operator Eustream expects to sign a memorandum of understanding in the next two weeks with counterparts in Romania and Bulgaria on a proposed gas pipeline aimed at reducing Balkan reliance on Russia, its chief said on Wednesday.

CEE POWER-Wind supply gains weigh on day-ahead prices – (Reuters) Central and southeastern Europe day-ahead power fell on Tuesday due to a strong gain in wind supply in the region, and Hungarian and Romanian spot prices remained at a large regional premium due to reduced import capacity, traders said…

Serbia

Serbia in talks with Romania over Black Sea gas - PM Vucice – (Reuters) Serbia has held talks with neghbouring Romania about importing natural gas from the Black Sea region, Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday…

Serbia gov’t urged to invest more in energy efficiency – (dtt-net) Serbian government should invest much more money than it’s doing at present to save energy across the country, representatives from country’s energy agency and construction sector say…

Armenia 

Armenia: crisis in energy sector is result of ineffective management – (Vestnik Kavkaza) A new increase of electricity rates is expected in Armenia. At the moment, it is unclear when and at what level the rates will be increased, but the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Yervand Zakaryan, states that an increase is inevitable. According to preliminary data from last autumn, the rate will probably be 51-52 drams per 1kWh…

Armenia, as member of Eurasian Economic Union, has good chances to recover its industry – (ARKA) Armenia, as member of the Eurasian Economic Union, has good chances to recover its industry, Vahan Hamazaspyan, author and head of a program for boosting solar energy usage…

Russian gas supplies to Armenia hike by 5.4% in 2014 – (ARKA) Russian gas supplies to Armenia increased by 5.4% to 2,061.7 million cubic meters in 2014, the press office of Gazprom Armenia reported. A total of 2,010.8 million cubic meters of gas were billed, a 3.4% increase compared to the year before.  In 2014 against 2013, gas consumption in energy sector grew by 16.2% and consumption by liquefied gas filling stations rose by 5.9% to 594.1million and 481.8 million cubic meters respectively…

Armenian PM and Gazprom official discuss expansion of partnership – (ARKA) Armenian Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan received on Tuesday deputy chairman of board of Russian Gazprom Valery Golubev to discuss expansion of partnership, the government press service reported…

Azerbaijan

Eurasian energy union to form as region becomes energy hub – (Daily Sabah) The Chairman of the International Association for Energy Economics Union (IAEE), Gürkan Kumbaroğlu, announced that the Turkey- and Azerbaijan-led energy projects are turning the region into an energy hub…

Azerbaijan and Turkey to form Eurasian Energy Union – (Vestnik Kavkaza) Gurkan Kumbaroglu, the president of the International Association for Energy Economics, said that the Azerbaijani company SOCAR has reached an agreement with Turkey to form the Eurasian Energy Union, headquartered in Istanbul. The Union will initially consist of Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan. It will further expand by granting membership to Ukraine, Bulgaria and Romania…

Azerbaijan and Turkey to form Eurasian Energy Union covering 18 countries – (APA) Azerbaijan and Turkey intend to form Eurasian Energy Union.  APA-Economics reports quoting Yeni Safak newspaper of Turkey that the centre of the Union will be Istanbul.  The Union to cover 18 countries will be headed by Turkey and Azerbaijan…

Azerbaijan, EU share common interest in energy security field – (Azernews) A European Union official believes that Azerbaijan and the EU share a number of common interests.  Johannes Hahn, EU Commissioner for European Neighborhood and Enlargement Negotiations said energy security is just one example.  “Our cooperation within the Eastern Partnership is an important tool to work towards fulfilling these shared interests,” he told Trend on January 29…

Turkey, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan to mull important energy projects – FM – (Trend) Azerbaijan, Turkey and Turkmenistan will discuss the energy projects which are important not only for the region, but also for Europe, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said…

Gazprom plans to supply gas to Turkey before Azerbaijan – (Vestnik Kavkaza) Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller and Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yildiz have agreed on the route of the new Russian gas pipeline to Europe, which has been called "Turkish Stream…

Azerbaijani President: A lot of attention paid to infrastructure projects – (Azer Tac) “A lot of attention has been paid over these years to infrastructure projects, and the work we have done is obvious,” President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has told the conference on outcomes of the first year of implementation of the “State Program on socio-economic development of districts of the Republic of Azerbaijan in 2014-2018…

Georgia

Important Things to Know about the Georgian Energy Sector – (Georgia Today) Now that we’ve successfully rung in 2015 we can look back at 2014. One topic that didn’t get the attention it deserved was the Georgian energy sector. Why should you care about the energy sector at all and why does it matter for Georgia? Energy development plays a crucial role for the country’s economy…

Georgia doesn’t welcome Rosneft – (Vestnik Kavkaza) The Minister of Economic Development of Georgia, Giorgi Kvirikashvili, who is thought to be one of the most powerful members of the government, stated that his ministry “would check in detail” the compliance with Georgian laws of the agreement between Petrocas Energy Group, a company which belonged to David Yakobashvili, and Rosneft on selling 49% of Petrocas and the Poti oil terminal to the Russian energy giant…

Southern Gas Corridor critically important, crucial for Europe – (Azernews) As the military clash in Ukraine and the conflict between Russia and the West escalates, U.S. government top energy officials and leading experts on the South Caucasus energy and politics assembled today at a Washington DC conference on “Security and Energy Implications for the South Caucasus after Ukraine…

Moldova

Belarus to Expand Supplies of Oil Products, Fertilizers to Moldova – (Oil and Gas Eurasia) A Belarusian delegation led by Chairman of Belneftekhim Concern Vitaly Pavlov is in Moldova on a working visit on 19-21 January, BelTA learnt from the Embassy of Belarus to Moldova.  The delegation has comprised representatives of OAO Naftan, OAO Mogilevkhimvolokno, Belarusian Oil Company, OAO Mozyr Refinery and Belorusneft…

Turkey

EU Energy Chief Plays Down Practicality of Proposed Russia-Turkey Pipeline – (The Wall Street Journal) Russian plans to build a new pipeline through Turkey and bypass Ukraine as a transit country for shipping gas to the European Union won’t work, the EU’s energy chief said on Thursday…

Turkey as a regional energy hub: Dreams and realities – (Daily Sabah) By its location and geopolitical affiliations Turkey is destined to play a key role in energy transportation projects that are being developed in the region. Political leaders of the country declared many times that Turkey is to become an energy hub, and it has all the chances to do so…

Davutoglu: Turkey intends to be world energy center – (Vestnik Kavkaza) Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said that the country intends to be a world energy center and uses all opportunities.  He noted that now Turkey is implementing a number of energy projects with importance for the energy security of Europe, and one of these projects is The Trans-Anatolian gas pipeline (TANAP), Trend reports…

Turkey Has Cheapest Gas and Electricity Than EU-28 – (IENE) Turkey's current natural gas and electricity prices are cheapest compared to those of the 28 EU countries and are at the same levels as in 2008, Turkey's Energy and Natural Resources Minister said Tuesday, according to Turkey's Anadolu Agency. Speaking at the Energy Markets Summit in Ankara, organized by the Turkish Energy Market Regulatory Authority…

TANAP - most important regional energy project, Erdogan says – (The Messenger Online) The Trans-Anatolian gas pipeline (TANAP) construction project is one of the most important energy projects in the region, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was quoted Jan. 27 by the Haberturk newspaper…

Energy minister criticizes Turkey’s southeastern municipality in electricity debt crisis – (Hurriyet Daily News) Referring to the latest electricity supply crisis between grid firm DEDAŞ and some of Turkey’s southeastern municipalities due to unpaid debts, Energy Minister Taner Yıldız said Turkey’s southeastern province of Diyarbakır’s Metropolitan Municipality could not just say they will not pay their debts…

Turkey aims for 3 GW of PV by 2023 – (PV Magazine) In 2014, Turkey saved $850 million in energy imports due to the increase in the share of renewable energy.  Speaking at the Energy Markets Summit organized by Turkey's Energy Market Regulatory Authority (EPKD) on Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the country was set to double its energy consumption by 2023, resulting in an energy investment need of around $120 billion…

Unpaid power bills dispute leaves 1.5m people without electricity – (Daily Sabah) More than one-and-a-half million people in southern Turkey are living without electricity after a debt dispute between power providers and local authorities saw energy supplies to the Diyarbakır region cut…

Mayors, power grid firm at odds in southeastern Turkey – (Hurriyet Daily News) A row over electricity in southeastern Turkey is continuing to grow, with grid firm DEDAŞ cutting power to water utilities, prompting municipalities to close DEDAŞ facilities in return.  DEDAŞ stated that the Diyarbakır Metropolitan Municipality was 90 million Turkish Liras in debt, leading it to cut power to water refining plants…

Turkey's gas imports to climb in 2015 – (Turkish Press) Turkey’s natural gas imports for 2015 are projected to reach 52.2 billion cubic meters, an increase of 9.6 percent compared with last year, according to Turkey’s Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources…

EU: Turkey ready to start energy talks – (Turkish Press) The European Union believes that Turkey is “sufficiently prepared” to start membership negotiations under chapter 15 on energy, a European Commission official said on Wednesday.  The comments follow Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu’s January tour of several EU capitals including Brussels, where he said that the government would focus on the EU membership process throughout the year…

Ukraine

Ukraine miners rescued after shelling left them trapped– (The Guardian) Almost 500 coal miners were trapped for a while in separatist-controlled Donetsk in Ukraine, after shelling knocked out a power station.  But a Donetsk city official told the Donetsk News Agency later in the afternoon that all the miners had been removed without injury and the power station was back online…

UKRAINIAN DATA CENTER SECURES POWER SUPPLY– (Data Center Dynamics) With Ukraine’s power industry under threat, a data center in the industrial heartlands has moved to secure its electricity feed.  Parkovaya Data Centre in central Ukraine has bolstered the security of its power supply, by signing a deal with Ukraine-based UPS dealer Madek…

Ukraine’s Energorynok gets USD 51.5m loan from Oschadbank – (SeeNews) Ukraine’s wholesale energy market operator Energorynok has taken out a UAH 800 million (USD 51.5m/EUR 45.3m) revolving credit line from local state-run lender Oschadbank, the company said on Wednesday…

Energy ministry ready to create conciliation commission to settle issues of reforming coal sector – (Kyiv Post) The Energy and Coal Industry Ministry of Ukraine is ready to create a conciliation commission to settle the issues of reforming the coal sector and social problems of coalmines, the press service of the ministry reported on Jan. 28…

Russia's Gazprom profits plunge 61%, hit by Ukraine row – (Hurriyet Daily News) Russia's gas giant Gazprom on Jan. 29 said its third quarter profits plunged 61 percent as supplies were suspended to Ukraine, one of its main customers.  The group's profits between July and September reached 105.7 billion rubles ($1.5 billion) but revenues in that quarter were down 6 percent year-on-year to 1.13 trillion rubles ($16.5 billion)…

UPDATE 2-Gazprom profits hit by Ukraine dispute and weaker rouble – (Reuters) Russian state gas producer Gazprom suffered a 60 percent slump in third quarter net profit on Thursday, hurt by the weaker rouble and after exports were halted to Ukraine over a pricing dispute…

Ukraine might cut gas imports from Russia thanks to joint projects with China – (NRCU) According to Volodymyr Demchyshyn Ukraine might cut imports of Russian gas by four billion cubic meters. The Ukrainian government has called to step up the implementation of projects of modernization of Ukrainian thermal power stations and construction of enterprises for production of synthetic gas for enterprises of the chemical industry on the basis of agreements signed by the China Development Bank with the Ministry of Energy and Coalmining of Ukraine and the Naftogaz Ukrainy company…

Ukraine sees imports of European gas overtaking Russian gas this year – (Hurriyet Daily News) Ukraine plans to cover up to 60 percent of its gas import needs this year from Europe, leaving its once-dominant supplier Russia delivering the rest, the head of the state energy firm told Reuters on late Jan. 22…

Ukraine coal miners demand gov't pay wages – (CCTV) Staying in Ukraine. Hundreds of coal miners are rallying outside the government building in Kiev. They're demanding payment of their delayed wages, some of which have been withheld for nearly half a year…

Coal miners converge on Ukraine cabinet to demand support for industry – (Ukrainian Journal) Around 300 miners came to the Ukrainian cabinet building on Wednesday to demand support for the coal mining industry and social guarantees to miners.  The protesters demand changes to the law On the State Budget of Ukraine for 2015 by including in it funds for capital support of mining enterprises, capital construction, technical modernization, and labor protection…

Ukraine to issue $2 billion in local bonds to support Naftogaz – (Reuters) Ukraine will issue domestic bonds amounting to 31.5 billion hryvnia ($2 billion) to support state energy firm Naftogaz, a document posted on the government's website said on Monday…

Ukraine to Issue Bonds to Support Naftogaz – (The Moscow Times) Ukraine will issue domestic bonds amounting to 31.5 billion hryvnas ($2 billion) to support state energy firm Naftogaz, a document posted on the government's website said on Monday.  Kiev, which is mired in an economic crisis, is under pressure to reform Naftogaz, whose financial deficit is significantly larger than the national budget deficit and requires government support to pay its bills…

Ukrainian energy minister, head of EU Delegation to Ukraine discuss resumption of gas transport monitoring – (Russia Beyond the Headlines) Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Minister Volodymyr Demchyshyn vowed his support for the EU's idea to resume the monitoring of natural gas transport to EU countries across Ukraine at a meeting with Head of the European Union Delegation to Ukraine Jan Tombinski…

 

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.