Weekly collection of energy news articles for the region.  Click on the links for access to original publications.

---

USEA Upcoming Events

 June 22-23: USAID / USEA Black Sea Transmission Planning Project (BSTP) Optimal Power Flow (OPF) Training Workshop – Budapest, Hungary

June 24, 2015: USAID / USEA Black Sea Transmission Planning Project (BSTP) Working Group Meeting – Budapest, Hungary 

June 25, 2015: USAID / USEA Southeast Europe Cooperation Initiative (SECI) Transmission System Planning Project Working Group Meeting – Budapest, Hungary 

Albania: USD 16 Million for Upgrading Power Grid – (Energetika) “The time investment ranges from 6 to 8 months. Investments include about 91 new cabins and 130 kilometres of medium voltage cable,” the Director of the Albanian Distribution System Operator (OSHEE), Adrian Cel...

Bulgarian Co Hired as Subcontractor to Help Repair Albania Power Plant – (Novinite) A Bulgarian company is now engaged in repair works at Komani, Albania's biggest hydro power plant (HPP), local reports suggest.  The BGN 1 M (EUR 0.5 M) has been commissioned by the Albanian utility KESH, the state-owned electric company in the country…

Bulgaria’s CERB Overhauls the Biggest Hydro Power Station in Albania – (Publics) Bulgarian company Centralna Energoremontna Baza (CERB) announced that it has embarked on a project for overhaul of Albania’s biggest hydropower plant – the Koman HPP. The project is worth BGN 1 million (about EUR 500,000) and was commissioned by the Albanian state-owned electricity company KESH…

Albania: OSHEE’s Investment in Electricity Loss Reduction – (Energetika) OSHEE will start the reconstruction in the Durres region, OSHEE’s Director, Adrian Cela, said. The total investment in Durres - where OSHEE will invest in the construction of 60 cabins, replacement of about 50...

Albania: Seasonal Businesses Not Paying for Electricity – (Energetika) Cela also warned that in the case of non-payment, these businesses will not be supplied with electricity. He noted that the businesses are seasonal and are operating only from May to September, which means the...

Bulgaria

NEK hasn’t asked for electricity price increase: Bulgaria energy minister – (Focus) “No electricity price increase has been asked for in the requests filed by the National Electricity Company (NEK) and the Electricity System Operator (ESO) to the Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC),” said Temenuzhka Petkova, Bulgarian Minister of Energy, speaking at a press briefing Wednesday, FOCUS News Agency reported…

Bulgaria orders green energy producers to cut output by 60 pct – (Reuters) Bulgaria's power grid operator ordered all renewable energy producers on Sunday to reduce their output by 60 percent in an attempt to balance production and consumption in the Balkan country, the state-owned company said…

Bulgarian PM met with US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Diplomacy Amos Hochstein (ROUNDUP) – (Focus) Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov and US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Diplomacy Amos Hochstein met on Wednesday to discuss on the possibilities for diversification of sources and routes as guarantee for energy independence, the press service of the government announced…

Bulgarian Industry to Call for the Resignation of the Energy Minister, Energy Regulator Chair – (Publics) The industrial organisations addressed directly PM Boyko Borissov with an appeal to review the planned higher electricity prices for the business and also ensure that the payments for feed-in tariffs for renewables and high-efficiency CHP, along with the expenses generated by the PPAs with AES Galabovo TPP and ContourGlobal Maritsa East 3, will also be charged for export-bound electricity…

Bulgarian Business Associations Oppose Upcoming Power Price Hike – (Novinite) Three employers’ associations have risen against an upcoming increase in electricity prices from July, warning that they will demand the resignations of the Energy Minister and the Chair of the Commission for Energy and Water Regulation (KEVR) if the voice of the business sector remains unheard…

Greece, Bulgaria to seal $112 million gas pipeline deal – (Business Day) Greece and Bulgaria will seal a deal in the coming weeks to build a gas pipeline connecting the two countries, part of the Southern Corridor infrastructure scheme to bring Caspian gas to Europe, two Greek energy ministry officials…

European Commission OKs Bulgaria’s Final Two 2014-2020 Operational Programs – (Novinite) The European Commission has given the green light to Bulgaria’s last 2 operational programs in the 2014-2020 programming period, including “Environment” and “Regions in Growth...

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnian utility ERS to raise power rates by 8.76 pct in July – (Reuters) The regulator in Bosnia's autonomous Serb Republic on Thursday allowed the region's power utility ERS to raise electricity prices for all consumers by an average 8.76 percent from July.  The electricity price is a politically sensitive issue in the Balkan country, where power bills consume a large slice of household income, especially in the winter. The increase is the first in five years…

Croatia

All EU members in SEE on track to meet renewable energy targets – EC – (RenewablesSee) All four EU members in Southeast Europe (SEE) - Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania and Slovenia - are expected to meet their 2020 targets for the share of renewable energy in their overall energy supply, the European Commission (EC) said on Tuesday…

Szijjártó: Government aims to link regional energy grids – (Budapest Business Journal) The government is working towards ensuring Hungaryʼs energy security and wants to link the energy grids of countries in the region, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said yesterday following a meeting with the European Unionʼs top energy official, Maros Sefcovic.  Gas transportation infrastructure development has been hampered by Romania and Croatia not completing the necessary investments for interconnectors…

Croatia: Average Household to Save EUR 9.28 Annually for Electricity – (Energetika) HEP said that citizens will continue to pay for electricity at the old price. The amount paid for power as of 1 July will be reduced in a few months or, as they said, “when they get the payment slip for the next...

Kosovo

Kosovo PM: Economic Growth to be Achieved with Mining and Energy – (Energetika) According to Mustafa, the government aims to achieve economic growth through increased competitiveness of the economy of Kosovo and the regional market, the European and world markets, and through unlocking the...

Macedonia

Energy Community – Tapping on its Energy Efficiency Potential – (Energy Community) Nowhere else in Europe does energy efficiency have such great potential than in the Energy Community Contracting Parties. In fact, their average energy intensity is nearly six times higher than the EU average. The Secretariat’s publication “Energy Community – Tapping on its Energy Efficiency Potential” demonstrates, by mapping out the projects, programmes and investment credit lines that support energy efficiency in the region…

Montenegro

Montenegrin EPCG: Electricity Consumption 13% Lower in May – (Energetika) On average, households paid EUR 29.5 for consumed electricity. The lowest consumption was in Žabljak where households paid EUR 22.7 on average. The highest consumption was noted in Ulcinj where the bill…

Montenegrin EPCG’s Projects Worth Over EUR 620,000 – (Energetika) EPCG is also setting up two high-voltage transmission lines in the Komini municipality, worth EUR 125,000. Additionally, construction of a substation in Ševari, worth EUR 66,000, is underway…

Montenegro's Upgraded TPP Pljevlja Capacity Raised to 223 MW – (IENE) The installed capacity of Montenegrin thermal power plant (TPP) Pljevlja has increasedto 223 MW from 190 MW thanks to two upgrades in the past three years, state-controlled power utility Elektroprivreda Crne Gore (EPCG) said in the June edition of its corporate newsletter…

Romania

Romania, second in EU for energy inefficiency – (Romania-Insider) Romania ranks second in Europe, after Bulgaria, for energy inefficiency, said Iulian Iancu, chairman of the Committee for Industry and Services within the Chamber of Deputies. Energy consumption in agriculture and services increased, and both fields have highest potential for increasing efficiency, Iancu added, cited by local Agerpres…

Romania’s electricity exports up by more than a quarter – (Romania-Insider) Romania’s electricity exports increased by 27% in the first five months of the year compared to the same period in 2014.  The growth was due to Romania’s market coupling with the markets in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary, according to Romania’s Energy Authority ANRE…

Enel Modernising Electricity Distribution in Romania – (Energetika) “After completing the programme some 300 customers in the area will benefit from enhanced quality of electricity supply,” Enel said.Byl the second half of this year, street networks will be upgraded and new…

Romanian ANRE: Lower Electricity Tariffs, Electricity Exports Grew By 27% – (Energetika) The zonal tariff for electricity transmission will be cheaper by about BGN 9/MWh (EUR 4.6) on the open market. This also applies to Transelectrica, according to the press release…

Serbia

EU Not Asking Serbia To Distance Itself From Russia ‘When It Comes To Energy’ – (inNews) The European Union is not asking Serbia to distance itself from Russia when it comes to energy, Maros Sefcovic, the Vice President of the European Commission in charge of Energy Union, said.  The EU’s priority in the region is interconnection between Bulgaria and Serbia and connection to gas terminal in Croatia, Sefcovic told Radio-Television of Serbia late Thursday, closing his visit to Belgrade…

Serbia: Electricity Price Increase Of 12 Pct As Of August 1 – (inNews) The minister announced that excise tax on electricity will be introduced, and that the increase in price, including this excise tax, will total 12 percent.  The amount has been harmonized with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Antic told a press conference at the Serbian government building…

Electricity price to go up 12 percent on August 1 – (b92) Electricity prices in Serbia will go up by 12 percent starting from August 1, Minister of Mining and Energy Aleksandar Antic said on Thursday.  The minister announced that excise tax on electricity will be introduced, and that the increase in price, including this excise tax, will total 12 percent…

Electricity Price to Increase 12% in Serbia Commencing 1 August – (Energetika) Despite the electricity price rise by 12%, the average price will still remain 50% cheaper than in Montenegro, twice as cheap as in Croatia and 15% cheaper than in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), the government…

Armenia

Armenia: The Most Expensive Electricity in CIS – (HETQ) As is known, the Public Services Regulatory Commission of the Republic of Armenia plans to make a decision about raising the price for electricity in Armenia by 6.93 AMD.  As a result, 1kWt/h will cost from 33.28 to 48.78 AMD  (depending on the time and voltage) for legal entities, and for private consumers - 38.78 AMD at night and 48,78 AMD during the day…

Armenia authorities do not permit electricity company to lose too much energy – (News.Am) The Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) Company does not agree with the normative of technological losses in the electricity distribution grids.  The head of Tariff Policy Department at the Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC), Garegin Baghramyan, stated the aforementioned at Wednesday’s PSRC meeting, as he presented the ENA’s petition to raise the price of electricity in the country…

Energy Debate: WB expert says planned electricity tariff rise “somewhat justified” – (Armenia Now) While the Armenian Government is going to partially approve the Russian-owned company’s application to increase the electricity tariff for Armenians, and dozens of thousands of citizens are planning to protest on Friday, the World Bank (WB) considers this as a justified tariff increase in the current energy field…

Electricity tariff may go down in a year, Armenian regulator claims – (ARKA) The chairman of Armenia’s Public Services Regulatory Commission Robert Nazaryan said in the parliament on Friday that the tariff for electricity may be lowered by 5 drams in a year’s time…

Armenian Energy Prices Raised Amid Protests – (Azatutyun) Utility regulators formally raised the prices of electricity in Armenia by over 16 percent on Wednesday as dozens of people scuffled with riot police in Yerevan in protest against the unpopular measure expected to spark larger anti-government demonstrations…

Armenia needs to implement reforms to confront energy challenges- World Bank study – (ARKA) To confront major challenges in the energy sector, the Armenian government will have to carry out five basic steps, Laura Bailey, World Bank Armenia Country manager, said today, when presenting the findings of a World Bank study on Armenia's power grid…

World Bank Warns Of Future Power Shortages In Armenia – (Azatutyun) Armenia could face a shortage of electricity unless it builds a new and large power plant in the coming years, energy experts from the World Bank warned in a report made public on Tuesday…

$8.55m for geothermal exploration in Armenia – (Energy Live News) Armenia is receiving $8.5m (£5.3m) to explore for geothermal resources in the country.  The World Bank’s ‘Geothermal Exploratory Drilling Project’ aims to find geothermal resources for power generation at the Karkar field…

New owner of Armenian Vorotan power plant granted 25-year license – (ARKA) Armenia’s Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) has granted today a license to US-based Contour Global Hydro Cascade, the new owner of Vorotan hydropower plants in Armenia,  for the production of electricity for a period of 25 years…

Azerbaijan

Alternative energy provides only 0.04% of power generation in Azerbaijan – (ABC.AZ) Alternative energy still remains insignificant for the energy balance in Azerbaijan and provides only 0.04% of power generation in the country.  According to the Azerbaijan’s State Committee, in Jan-May alternative energy provided generation of 4.1 million kW-hr, that is 0.041% of gross generation (10 bn kW-hr) and  0.043% of commercial generation (9.537 bn kW-hr)…

Azerbaijan gas exports up 4.1% – (Interfax) Azerbaijan exported 3.842 billion cubic metres of gas between January and May 2015, 4.1% more than in the same period last year, the country’s State Customs Committee told Interfax…

Climate change sets new challenges for Azerbaijan – (Azernews) At a time when UN talks are underway to develop a new universally-recognized international climate change agreement, the world is bracing for new wave of global warming from man-derived greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution…

Europe offers Azerbaijani gas to Serbia – (News.Az) European Commissioner for Energy Maroš Šefčovič during his visit to Belgrade in an interview with Serbian TV-channel RTS noted that he drew to the attention of the Serbian prime minister the possibility of receiving gas from Azerbaijan…

Putin courts gas-rich Azerbaijan – (UPI) Trade between Russian and gas-rich Azerbaijan is expected to continue along an upward trajectory, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.  Putin met during the weekend in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, with Azeri President Ilham Aliyev…

Georgia

SOCAR Georgia assisting flood aftermath in Tbilisi – (Azernews) SOCAR Energy Georgia, Azerbaijan's energy giant SOCAR's daughter company operating in Georgia, provides assistance in the aftermath of floods in Tbilisi, company's CEO Mahir Mammadov told Trend on June 15…

TANAP implementation underway without problems – (Azernews) The project on construction of the Trans-Anatolian gas pipeline is being implemented in Turkey without problems and at an accelerated pace.  This statement was made by Kenan Yavuz, the head of SOCAR Turkey Enerji and Board Member of Petkim Petrochemical Holding, local Turkish media reported on June 16…

Moldova

EU funded Energy and Biomass Project takes part in the European Union Sustainable Energy Week, Second Edition – (AEE) The EU funded Energy and Biomass Project participates in the European Union Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW), Second Edition, held in Chisinau during 15-21 of June, upon the initiative of the EU Delegation to the Republic of Moldova…

Turkey

Russia Gives Coordinates for New Pipeline to Turkey – (IENE) Russia’s Gazprom gave Turkey the necessary coordinates for the planned Turkish Stream natural gas pipeline last week, Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yıldız has told reporters.  "We took the necessary coordinates from Gazprom last week. Now, preliminary permissions are needed for the pipeline’s feasibility report…

Gazprom's Turkish pipeline talks expected to resume next week – (Reuters) A meeting between the head of Russia's Gazprom's and Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz is expected to be rescheduled for next week as both sides strive to finalise agreement on a proposed underwater gas pipeline to Turkey, a senior energy ministry official said on Wednesday…

Turkey's Power Plants Rose to 1,202 End of May: TEIAS – (IENE) Number of power plants in Turkey rose to 1,202 at the end of Maythis year, Turkey's state-owned electricity transmission company TEIAS said Wednesday.  The total number of power plants in Turkey was1,126 at the end of 2014 and 1,175 at the end of April, according to a report by TEIAS…

Start of TANAP construction work in Turkey defined – (Azernews) The first welding work on the Trans-Anatolian Gas Pipeline (TANAP) construction project will begin in August, said the head of Tekfen construction company Levent Kafkasli, the Turkish news agency DHA reported June 15…

Ukraine

US DOE advises Ukraine on winter fuel crisis plan – (WNN) The deputy assistant secretary of the US Department of Energy last week met with the president of Ukrainian nuclear power plant operator Energoatom as part of preparations for an emergency response plan for Ukraine's energy sector during the winter season. Two days prior to this, William Bryan took part in a meeting between Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and US Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz, during which the plan was also discussed…

Coal Mines In Eastern Ukraine Go Underground – (World Crunch) Komsomolets Donbas is one of the largest coal mines in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine. But for more than a year now, it's been out of operation due to serious damage suffered by the war. There are holes from falling explosives. The electricity has been interrupted. And the entrance is practically collapsed. Only a couple of the workers are still left, and they haven’t been paid for several months…

Ukraine will not pay for Russian power supplies to Donbas hostilities zone – Ukrenergo chief – (Interfax-Ukraine) Yuriy Kasich, acting director at Urkenergo, has said that Ukraine will not pay for Russian electricity supplies to the rebel-held areas of the country's Donbas region…

Ukraine: Ukraine Is Reforming The "Green" Tariff And Creating Conditions For Investments In Renewable Energy – (Mondaq) On 4 June 2015, Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted in its entirety the Draft Law "On Amending Some Laws of Ukraine As to Providing Competitive Conditions for Producing Electricity from Alternative Energy Sources" No. 2010-d (the "Law"), which significantly changes regulations on the use of "green" tariff and can stimulate the development of projects for production of electricity from renewable energy sources…

Milestone Law amending Feed-In Tariff in Ukraine – (JDSupra) On June 4, 2015, the Ukrainian parliament adopted Draft Law on Introduction of Changes to Certain Laws of Ukraine with respect to Securing Competitive Conditions for Production of Electricity from Alternative Energy Sources, No. 2010-d of 19.05.2015 (the “Law”). The Law, which contains various changes to the current feed-in tariff regime in Ukraine…

DTEK energy production tumbles, chief executive says sector difficult – (Digital Look) First quarter measures of DTEK Energy’s coal and electricity output were down about 20% on average as extreme political volatility continued to rock the country, the company revealed on Friday.  The chief executive of Ukraine’s largest energy company, Maxim Timchenko, said the sector remained difficult for various reasons…

Ukrenergo's losses from Crimea annexation assessed at billions of hryvnias – company chief – (Interfax-Ukraine) The losses of national energy company Ukrenergo from the annexation of Crimea have been assessed at billions of hryvnias, acting head of Ukrenergo Yuriy Kasich said in an exclusive interview with Interfax-Ukraine…

‘Urgent changes needed in Ukraine’s energy sector’ – (Energy Live News) Urgent changes are needed in the energy sector in Ukraine.  That’s according to Sir Suma Chakrabarti, President of the European Bank for Research and Development (EBRD), who was speaking at the Ukrainian-Canadian Congress in Toronto…

Ukraine's Energy Ministry, U.S., Canadian, EU experts to develop emergency response plan – (Interfax-Ukraine) The Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry of Ukraine, together with international experts, has begun to develop a response plan for emergency situations which should help prevent the occurrence of emergencies during the implementation of the country's energy policy, head of the European integration department at the Energy and Coal Industry Ministry, Mykhailo Bno-Airiyan…

Demchyshyn says price of Russian gas for Ukraine will be lower than $247 per 1,000 cubic meters in Q1 – (Kyiv Post) Energy and Coal Industry Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Demchyshyn has said that Ukraine will buy Russian gas in the third quarter of 2015 at a price lower than $247 per 1,000 cubic meters…

Russia, Ukraine, EU may holds gas talks on June 26-29 – RIA – (Reuters) Russian, Ukrainian and European Commission officials may meet on June 26-29 to discuss Ukraine-related gas issues, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak was quoted as saying by Russia's RIA news agency on Tuesday…

No date set yet for Russia-EU-Ukraine natural gas talks – (Kyiv Post) Russia's European Union envoy said on June 16 that preparations are going on for the next round of Russia-EU-Ukraine ministerial talks on natural gas but that no date had been set for them…

 

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.