Albania's PM considers Energy sector the most important source of economic growth – (Balkans) Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama inaugurated the Albania Oil, Gas & Energy 2015 Summit at the Sheraton Tirana Hotel by giving the Welcome Address. He stated that the energy sector is seen by the Government as one of the most important sources of economic growth of the country…

Albania: PM considers Energy sector a most important source of economic growth – (PRWeb) Prime Minister Edi Rama inaugurated the Albania Oil, Gas & Energy 2015 Summit on 17th-18th March at the Sheraton Tirana Hotel by giving the Welcome Address. He stated that the energy sector is seen by the Government as one of the most important sources of economic growth of the country…

Albanian PM Edi Rama considers Energy sector a most important source of economic growth – (Albeu) Prime Minister Edi Rama inaugurated the Albania Oil, Gas & Energy 2015 Summit on 17th-18th March at the Sheraton Tirana Hotel by giving the Welcome Address. He stated that the energy sector is seen by the Government as one of the most important sources of economic growth of the country…

TAP awards first major contract for construction of access roads and bridges in Albania – (Azer Tac) Trans Adriatic Pipeline AG (TAP) has selected a joint venture formed by Albanian Gener 2 Sh.p.K and Italian Sicilsaldo S.p.A. for the construction and rehabilitation of access roads and bridges in Albania, TAP has said on its website…

Power Outages in Top 3 of Obstacles for Albanian Business – (publics) Although the number of power outages in a typical month in Albania decreased from 32.8 in 2007 to 7.8 in the latest BEEPS round, partly owing to increased precipitation, it still exceeded the Southeast Europe (SEE) average of 5.4, the EBRD said…

Bulgaria

No drastic increase of electricity price expected in Bulgaria before forthcoming elections: expert – (Focus) “No drastic increase of the electricity price is expected in Bulgaria with regard to the forthcoming local elections,” energy expert professor Atanas Tasev said speaking for Radio FOCUS.  In his words, an increase of the electricity price will not solve the problems in Bulgaria’s energy sector…

Bulgaria will purchase electricity from two American power plants at reduced prices when NEC pays off: Minister – (Focus) Bulgaria will begin purchasing electricity from two American power plants at reduced price from the moment when the National Electricity Company (NEC) pays off its obligations to the two U.S. power plants, which by the moment run at total of BGN 700 million. That is what Minister of Energy Temenuzhka Petkova announced for BNT…

Bulgaria grid operator inks landmark changes to contracts with American TPPs (ROUNDUP) – (Focus)  Bulgaria’s National Electricity Company (NEK) inked an agreement on changes to the long-term contracts with TPP AES Maritsa Iztok 1 and TPP Kontur Global Maritsa Iztok 3 on Wednesday.  The papers were signed by Executive Director of the National Electricity Company (NEK) Petar Iliev; Chief Commercial Officer of AES Bulgaria Ivan Tsankov; and Garry Levesley, Chief Executive Officer of TPP Kontur Global Maritsa Iztok 3…

Bulgaria's Energy Minister Mulls Levying Energy Exports – (Novinite) Electricity generated for exports and for the domestic market should be equally levied with the "liabilities to society" tax, Bulgarian Energy Minister Temenuzhka Petkova has said…

Annual repair of unit 5 of Bulgaria’s Kozloduy NPP kicks off – (Focus) At 2:05 p.m. on Saturday, April 11, unit 5 of Bulgaria’s Kozloduy NPP was suspended from operation for planned annual repair, the press office of the power plant announced…

INTERVIEW-Bulgaria seeks to redraw EU pipeline map away from Russia – (Reuters) Bulgaria is about to open a licensing round for oil and gas in the Black Sea as it seeks to turn itself into an energy hub and redraw the European pipeline map to curb the country's dependence on Russia, a senior official said on Wednesday…

Bulgaria Seeks to Redraw EU Oil and Gas Routes Away From Russia – (The Moscow Times) Bulgaria is about to open a licensing round for oil and gas in the Black Sea as it seeks to turn itself into an energy hub and redraw the European pipeline map to curb the country's dependence on Russia, a senior official said Wednesday…

EU Allocates Funding for Feasibility Study of Bulgaria-Turkey Gas Interconnector – (IENE) The state-owned natural gas transmission operator Bulgartransgaz was awarded EU funding for pre-investment feasibility study of the planned interconnector between Bulgaria and Turkey…

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia's 300 MW Gacko plant back online after 45-day outage – (Reuters) Bosnia's 300 megawatt (MW) Gacko coal-fired plant was reconnected to the grid on Wednesday after a 45-day outage for planned maintenance, the plant's technical manager said…

Bosnia's TPP Gacko Back on Stream After Routine Overhaul – (IENE) Bosnian 300 MW thermal power plant (TPP) Gacko was reconnected to the grid on Wednesday after a 42-day regular annual overhaul, local media reported…

Bosnia's TPP Gacko back on stream after routine overhaul – report – (SeeNews) Bosnian 300 MW thermal power plant (TPP) Gacko was reconnected to the grid on Wednesday after a 42-day regular annual overhaul, local media reported…

Croatia

Croatia invests in biomass CHP facilities – (Cogeneration) Dutch firm HoSt, a European supplier of bioenergy systems, has received a €20 million order from Croatian electricity company HEP to build two wood-fired combined heat and power plants…

Kosovo

World Bank sets conditions for the "New Kosovo" project – (Albeu) Before taking a decision to support or not the largest energy project in the country "Kosova e Re", the World Bank seems to have some conditions. The first condition before taking a decision on this project is the publication of the assessment of environmental and social impact that will have "New Kosovo" project…

Montenegro

Montenegro's households power consumption up 9% y/y in March – (SeeNews) Montenegrin power utility Elektroprivreda Crne Gore (EPCG) said that the consumption of electricity by households in the country rose by an annual 9% to over 113.2 million KWh in March…

Romania

UPDATE 1 - Romania's energy output rises 4.2% in Jan-Feb – (SeeNews Renewables) Romania's energy output rose by an annual 4.2% in the first two months of the year, while imports fell 9.5%, the statistics office, INS, said on Thursday

Ukraine crisis, anti-corruption drive, boost Romanian energy reform – (EurActiv) Recent investigations of “smart guys” contracts have helped reduce corruption within the Romanian energy sector, and have accelerated the country’s market liberalisation, at a time when the Ukraine crisis has forced Bucharest to assume a more important role in region…

Euro-Asian Economic Summit: Romanian supports the creating of the energy union in Europe – (The Diplomat)  Foreign Affairs Ministry's (MAE) Secretary of State for European Affairs George Ciamba, in the Euro-Asian Economic Summit of Istanbul, voiced Romania's support for the creation of an energy union in Europe, mainly focused on building infrastructure projects, including the interconnections of electricity and gas and the foundation of a completely functional internal energy market, informs a MAE release quoted by Agerpres…

MAE's Ciamba voices Romania's support for creating energy union in Europe – (ACT Media) Foreign Affairs Ministry's (MAE) Secretary of State for European Affairs George Ciamba, in the Euro-Asian Economic Summit of Istanbul, voiced Romania's support for the creation of an energy union in Europe, mainly focused on building infrastructure projects, including the interconnections of electricity and gas and the foundation of a completely functional internal energy market, informs a MAE...

Euro-Asian Economic Summit: Romanian supports the creating of the energy union in Europe – (The Diplomat) Foreign Affairs Ministry's (MAE) Secretary of State for European Affairs George Ciamba, in the Euro-Asian Economic Summit of Istanbul, voiced Romania's support for the creation of an energy union in Europe, mainly focused on building infrastructure projects, including the interconnections of electricity and gas and the foundation of a completely functional internal energy market, informs a MAE release quoted by Agerpres…

Serbia

Serbia Eager to Join Turkish Stream Gas Project – Serbian Envoy to Russia – (Oil & Gas Eurasia) Serbia is interested in taking part in the Turkish Stream gas pipeline project, Serbian Ambassador to Russia Slavenko Terzic said Friday. The pipeline is planned to be built from Russia to Turkey across the Black Sea. A gas hub for consumers in southern Europe will be created on the Turkish-Greek border…

Serbia is interested in the South gas corridor – (Azer Tac) SOCAR's head office hosted a meeting of the president of the company Rovnag Abdullayev with the delegation led by Prime Minister of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić on 14 April…

Serbia shows interest in Southern Gas Corridor – (Azernews) Serbia’s top official has voiced his country’s interest in the Southern Gas Corridor that envisages supply of Caspian Sea resources to the energy-hungry Europe.  The remarks made during a meeting between Rovnag Abdullayev, the president of Azerbaijan’s state energy company SOCAR and the Serbian delegation led by Aleksandar Vucic, Serbia’s prime minister on 14 April…

Armenia

Armenia to receive $52-million IBRD soft loan for energy purposes – (News.am) The Minister of Finance, Gagik Khachatryan, and the World Bank (WB) Country Manager for Armenia, Laura Bailey, on Wednesday signed loan agreements…

Armenia has opportunity to conduct active energy policy: MP – (Armenpress) The Deputy from the Prosperous Armenia Party fraction of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, Mikayel Melkumyan finds that it’s possible to reduce gas tariffs…

Electricity prices may rise – (Aysor) In the first decade of May the Electric Networks of Armenia will request the Public Services Regulatory Commission to raise the prices of electricity, Haykakan Zhamanak reports…

“Electric Networks of Armenia” to propose to the regulator to raise the tariff by 6 drams – (AKRA) “Electric Networks of Armenia” is planning to file an application with the Public Services Regulatory Commission in early May to increase the energy tariff by 6 drams, Haykakan Zhamanak (Armenian Time) newspaper reports referring to its sources…

Total greenhouse gas emissions in Armenia are within norm- minister – (ARKA) Total greenhouse gas emissions in Armenia are within the normal range – two metric tons per capita, down from the maximum allowable 6 tons per one person, nature protection minister Aramais Grigoryan told during a Cabinet session today…

Gazprom invests $900 million in Armenia over 15 years – (ARKA) Russian Gazprom has invested a total of $900 million in Armenian economy over the last 15 years, Gazprom Armenia CEO Vardan Harutyunyan said today…

Azerbaijan

AZN 800 million invested in alternative energy in Azerbaijan – (ABC.AZ) Baku hosts IV international conference "Solar energy of South Caucasus, Central Asia & Eastern Europe - SOLAR-2015".  Deputy chairman of the State Agency for Renewable & Alternative Energy of Azerbaijan (ABOEMDA) Jamil Melikov, delivering speech at the conference said that already AZN 800 million has been invested in the development of alternative energy…

IEA says Azerbaijan enjoys game-changing potential for energy consumers in Europe, Asia – (Azernews) Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan offer game-changing potential for energy consumers in Europe and Asia, the International Energy Agency said in its Monday report…

WB may finance new energy project in Azerbaijan – (Azernews) The World Bank is considering a possibility of implementing a project together with a single operator on the electricity distribution network in Azerbaijan - Azerishig JSC.  "A WB mission led by Ranjit Lamech, the head of the energy department in Europe and Central Asia be on visit to Baku on April 10-15 to discuss the prospects of implementing a new project," the WB Baku office told Trend…

Analysis: Turkey pivotal to future of European gas supplies – (Financial Times) Presidents Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey, Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan (left) and ... to their export problem, to strengthen Turkey's position as an energy hub…

Conference on solar energy due in Baku – (Azernews) Baku will be hosting one of the key events in the field of solar energy - CISOLAR-2015 4th International Conference and Exhibition “The development of the solar energy industry in the region of South Caucasus, Eastern Europe and Central Asia” on April 16-17, the State Agency for Renewable & Alternative Energy Sources said…

CISOLAR 2015 international conference starts in Baku – (Azer Tac) CISOLAR-2015 4th International Conference and Exhibition “The development of the solar energy industry in the region of South Caucasus, Eastern Europe and Central Asia”, has started in Baku on April 16, with official support of the State Agency for Renewable & Alternative Energy Sources (ABEMDA), organized by "IBCentre" company…

For Jan-Mar Azerbaijan’s gas extraction declines by 3.6% year-on-year – (ABC.AZ) This March Azerbaijan’s gas production soared by 12.6% against February 2015.  The State Statistics Committee (SSC) informs that over Jan-Mar 2015 Azerbaijan produced 7.3 bn cu m of natural gas that was by 3.6% less against the 2014 same term. In January production totaled 2.493 bn cu m, in February 2.27 bn cu m, and in March 2.558 bn cu m…

Russia threatens buyers of Azerbaijani gas – (Azernews) Facing with Europe’s desire to reduce the dependence on Russian gas, including the purchase of "blue fuel" from Azerbaijan, Moscow has passed to direct threats.  The Russian media reported that Gazprom has threatened those opposing the construction of the South Stream and Turkish Stream gas pipelines to terminate the supplies…

IEA: Central Asia, Eastern Europe need to open energy doors – (UPI) A more liberalized energy sector in Eastern Europe and Central Asia is necessary for regional energy security, a report Monday from the IEA said…

Georgia

EU favours gas delivery through Georgia via Southern Corridor – (Agenda.Ge) The European Union (EU) is extremely interested in expanding energy cooperation with Caspian Sea countries, said EU Ambassador to Azerbaijan Malena Mardi at the Caspian Oil and Gas forum, yesterday in Baku.  The idea of linking the Caspian Sea to Europe with gas delivery includes the $10 billion USD Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline project (TANAP), which will travel through Georgia…

Big potential for small hydropower in Georgia – (Caspian News Agency) The energy sector in my native Bulgaria is relatively hi-tech and liberalised. So when I came to Georgia at the end of 2006 to take part in the creation and management of a key energy company and a year later began running the firm…

Hydrolea CEO sees potential for growth in Georgia’s hydropower industry – (Cistran Finance) The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) published a personal account on Friday by Radoslav Dudolenski, CEO of Hydrolea, who said Georgia’s hydropower industry is showing growth potential…

Russian gas supply to Europe through TAP real option – expert – (Trend) This gas will be transported from Georgian-Turkish border to Turkey's western borders via the Trans-Anatolian pipeline and further to Greece, Albania via TAP...

Moldova

The competition to select districts where to establish Public-Private Partnerships for bioenergy supply has been launched – (aee) The Energy and Biomass Project, funded by the EU, calls the Districts of the Republic of Moldova to embark on the competition aimed at launching Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) to provide bioenergy services…

Turkey

Renewables to provide most of Turkey's additional electricity production this year, says energy minister – (Out-law) Most of a planned 4,000 megawatt (MW) increase in Turkish electricity production planned for 2015 will come from "local and renewable" sources, the country's energy minister has said.10 Apr 2015…

Turkey launches construction of first nuclear power plant, Akkuyu in Mersin – (Daily Sabah) Turkey launched the construction of its first nuclear power plant, a $20 billion project, for greater energy self-sufficiency on Tuesday. The nuclear power station in Akkuyu in the southern province of Mersin is being built by Russia's nuclear agency Rosatom…

Energy Minister: Akkuyu to be Turkey's securest structure – (Daily Sabah) Turkey will join 30 other countries that use nuclear power by building its first nuclear power plant in Akkuyu. Security concerns have become one of the main topics of discussion, as is the case worldwide since the Fukushima tragedy…

Turkey launches construction of first nuclear power plant, Akkuyu in Mersin – (Daily Sabah) Construction of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, the first of three to be built in Turkey, has begun in Mersin. The plant will help Turkey cover its electricity needs, saving a large amount on energy imports…

Construction for first nuclear power plant commences in Turkey – (Power-Technology) Russian nuclear power corporation Rosatom has started construction of the Akkuyu power plant in Turkey, the first nuclear project in the country…

Protests as Turkey builds first nuclear power plant – (Deutsche Welle) Turkey launched construction of its first nuclear power plant on Tuesday, which the government hopes will open a new era of greater energy self-sufficiency. But the ceremony faced protests from environmentalists…

Russia Energy Min: Turkish Stream Route Might Be Extended – (IENE) Greece, FYROM, Serbia, Hungary and Austria might be included into the route of the so-called "Turkish Stream" pipeline project, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak has said…

Director Kopač welcomes today’s signature of synchronisation agreement of Turkish power system with Continental Europe Synchronous Area – (Energy Delivering a keynote speech at the signature ceremony of the long-term agreement on the permanent synchronous operations of the Turkish power system with the Continental Europe Synchronous Area between ENTSO-E and Turkish TSO TEIAS in Brussels today, Director Kopač said: Community)…

Gazprom Pressured to Cut Prices as Putin Eyes Turkish Link – (Bloomberg Business) OAO Gazprom is under pressure to cut prices for Turkey to help Russian President Vladimir Putin end his nation’s reliance on Ukrainian pipelines to ship gas to Europe following a bloody dispute between the former Soviet allies…

Renewables to provide most of Turkey's additional electricity production this year, says energy minister – (Out-Law) Most of a planned 4,000 megawatt (MW) increase in Turkish electricity production planned for 2015 will come from "local and renewable" sources, the country's energy minister has said.10 Apr 2015…

Ukraine

Statement of Director Kopač on adoption of Third Package compliant gas law in Ukraine – (Energy Community) “I sincerely welcome today’s adoption of the new gas market law which is in compliance with the Third Energy Package by the Ukrainian Parliament. This brings to an end an intensive process, in which the Energy Community Secretariat was strongly involved…

Yatsenyuk says Ukraine spends $1 billion on gas, electricity supplies to Donbas, receives no payment – (Kyiv Post) The Ukrainian budget doesn't receive any payment from Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts however pensions, gas and electricity supplies to the occupied territories in Donetsk and Luhansk regions continue to be paid for the government…

Demchyshyn: Almost no electricity shipped to uncontrolled Donbas areas, gas supplies insignificant – (Kyiv Post) There is almost no electricity supply via the backbone power grids with a voltage of 110 kV and higher to the uncontrolled territory in eastern Ukraine, Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Minister Volodymyr Demchyshyn said in parliament on April 10…

Ukraine exports electricity worth $35,3 million, imports - $34,8 million in the first quarter of 2015 – (Kyiv Post) Ukraine in January - March 2015 exported electricity worth $35,333 million, in particular in March – worth $9,174 million…

Energoatom slightly decreases electricity production in Q1 – (Interfax-Ukraine) Energoatom in January-March 2015 decreased electricity production by 0.02% (by 4.8 million kilowatt-hours) year-over-year, to 23.792 billion kWh, the press service of the company has said…

Russia Gives Gas Discounts to Ukraine to Help Its Residents – Putin – (Sputnik News) Russia is not obliged to give Ukraine discounts on gas deliveries but does so because it understands Kiev’s difficult economic situation, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday…

Ukraine faces 'unprecedented' energy crisis – (EurActiv) Ukraine faces an unprecedented energy crisis after the loss of coal mines and shale gas fields in war-torn regions, and Russia’s push to bypass it as a transit country for natural gas to Europe, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has warned…

Russia Plans to End Ukraine Gas Transit for New Route After 2019 – (Bloomberg Business) Russia is planning to let its natural gas transit contract with Ukraine expire in favor of a route it seeks to build under the Black Sea or supplies to Asia…

Baltics may risk more Russia tension with Europe power grid plan – (Reuters) The Baltic states' goal of integrating with Europe's power grid risks cutting off an exclave of Russian territory, tightening nerves already stretched by the Ukraine crisis…

New law is big step for Ukraine’s energy reform – (Interfax) Ukraine moved forward with its energy reforms last week as the country’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, passed a new gas market bill aimed at bringing its regulations in line with the EU’s Third Energy Package…

Europe to draw up energy crisis contingency plans – (Reuters) The European Union is working on emergency plans to make member states better prepared for any kind of energy supply outages, Europe's energy and climate chief said on Thursday…

 

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