Albania

CEZ's Albania unit to increase power imports from August – ( Reuters) Czech CEZ's Albania unit will increase energy imports from August to meet rising demand as the weather cools and consumption grows, the CEZ unit said.

CEZ Shperndarje to increase energy imports in Albania from August – (EBR) CEZ Shperndarje, a unit of Czech's CEZ Group, plans to increase energy imports to 350 megawatt-hours (MWh) per month from August 2012 in a bid to meet growing demand as the weather cools and consumption level rises…

Bulgaria

SE Bulgaria Registers 37% Increase in Renewable Electricity Production –(Novinite.com) The production of renewable electricity in southeastern Bulgaria increased by 37% in July 2012, while the expenses for purchasing green power went up by 56%, according to data of power distributor EVN Bulgaria…

Belene NPP costs almost twice the price of Bulgaria’s entire energy sector: minister – (FOCUS News Agency )“People should know the facts around Belene NPP and they should cast a well-informed vote,” Bulgarian Minister of Economy, Energy and Tourism Delyan Dobrev said in a commentary for the Bulgarian National Television (BNT)…

Bulgaria's Energy Minister: Natural gas is our hope – (Standart)  "Natural gas is Bulgaria's big hope for energy independence," Bulgaria's minister of economy, energy and tourism, Delyan Dobrev stated in an interview for ITAR-TASS, cited by the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA)…

Galvanized: Sofia Vows for Electric Mobility Plan (Public.gb) Helped by Full Charger’s expertise and willingness to develop a charging network for EV’s, Bulgaria seems to make some actual steps towards more gasoline-free transport…

CEZ, EVN invest in grid updates, E.On on the stand-by – (FOCUS News Agency) Sofia. Power company CEZ plans to invest over BGN 2 mln in its Western Bulgaria grid in August, company officials said…

Nuke power plant to cost each Bulgarian BGN 1,000: socialist (Focus News Agency) - Sofia. “If it turns out that it is impossible to organise a referendum [on Belene NPP project] after all the efforts we made, it will mean an end to the democratic process in Bulgaria,” said Anton Kutev, secretary of the National Council of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) and MP with the Coalition for Bulgaria, speaking at a press conference themed ‘Elections and rules for their organisation’, reporter informs…

Bulgaria Postpones Grid Connection of Large-Scale Renewable Capacities (Novinite – Sofia News Agency) - Bulgaria plans to prevent sudden power price spikes by postponing the connection of new large-scale renewable capacities to the grid by several years…

Electricity costs fuel Bulgarian inflation (Financial Mirror) - Bulgaria's consumer prices jumped 1.5% in June, raising annual inflation to 3.1% after a double-digit increase of electricity costs in the European Union's poorest country…

Renewable Sources Curb Electricity Prices in Bulgaria ( Standart)  - The shocking fourteen percent increase in the retail price of electricity in Bulgaria as of July 1st, 2012 is hardly likely to repeat itself in the near future, as the government has taken several years’ break from including new renewable electricity capacity into the country’s power grid…

Bulgarian Watchdog Slashes Photovoltaic Investors' Profit Margins (Novinite.com) - The State Commission for Energy and Water Regulation (DKEVR) is about to slash purchasing prices of solar-generated electricity in a bid to stem future power price hikes…

Bosnia

Thermal Power Plant Ugljevik is big energy potential of Bosnia’s RS -  (Balkans.com)  - The President of Bosnia’s Republic of Srpska Milorad Dodik said that thermal power plant Ugljevik would be one of the greatest potentials for electricity production in Serbian Republic and the whole region, after the construction of third unit…

Bosnia's BH Gas seeks 20 pct wholesale gas price rise – (Reuters) Bosnia's top gas distributor BH Gas wants to increase regulated wholesale natural gas prices by 20.12 percent because of a stronger U.S. dollar and the growing cost of Russian supplies, the company said on Thursday…

Bosnia's B&H Elektroprivreda announces public call for construction of Tuzla Block 7 Power Point -  (Balkans.com) - The B&H Elektroprivreda Public Utility announced public call for prequalification for election of Project partner for joint investment in Block 7 - 450 MW of the Tuzla Power Plant…

Croatia

RWE Bids To Build Thermoelectric Plant In Croatia, Poslovni Says – (Bloomberg) - RWE AG (RWE), Germany’s biggest utility, is one of 45 bidders for building a thermoelectric plant Plomin in the Croatian Istria peninsula, Poslovni Dnevnik reported today, citing Economy Minister Radimir Cacic…

National electricity company calls for investors in €800 million Polmin C project – (International Law office) According to the Ministry of Economy, Labour and Entrepreneurship's Annual Energy Report for 2010(1) 18,869.9 gigawatt hours (GWh) of electricity were supplied in Croatia in 2010 (with reported transmission and distribution system losses representing 2,021.9GWh)…

Macedonia

China Sunergy to supply 50 MW of PV modules for projects in Romania, Macedonia – ( SolarServer) China Sunergy Company Ltd. (Nanjing, China) has agreed to supply 50 MW of its multi-crystalline solar photovoltaic (PV) modules to V2M Ltd…

FYR Macedonia’s PCC NEW HYDRO company green kwh project overview – (Balkans.com) FYR Macedonia’s Government announced on 14 February 2007 and 13 September 2007 an International Public Call for granting water concession for electricity generation from SHPPs based on a DBOT model. PCC SE was selected by the Grantor as a winning Bidder for granting the right to use water for electricity generation…

Electricity theft undermines economies, rule of law (Setimes.com) The theft of electricity by consumers in the region has cost electrical distribution companies millions of euros, but analysts hope enforcement measures by foreign power companies will change that…

Romania

Romania to tax energy producers gaining from price deregulation – (Reuters) Romania's leftist government plans to impose an additional tax from 2013 on electricity and gas producers that stand to gain from the approaching deregulation of energy prices, deputy Finance Minister Liviu Voinea was quoted as saying…

Romanian energy company Hidroelectrica renegotiates contract with Alro, expects extra EUR 150 mln annually – (Romania Insider) Romanian hydroelectric company Hidroelectrica stands to make an extra EUR 150 million a year following the renegotiation of the contract with aluminum producer Alro Slatina, the energy company’s judiciary administration representative Remus Borza announced today…

Romanian Energy Sector Facing New Tax – (Taxation) Power companies in Romania are set to face a new tax on their profits, as the government looks for means to raise tax revenues and provide subsidies to low income households…

Romania H1 energy production down 1.8 pct y/y – (Reuters) Romania's energy production fell 1.8 percent on the year in the first half, while imports were down 4.7 percent, data from the National Statistics Board showed on Wednesday…

Electric energy consumption increases in Romania by 1.5 percent in first six months – (Actmedia) The final electric energy consumption in Romania was 26.842 billion KWh in the first six months of 2012, up by 1.5 percent from the similar time span of the previous year, say the provisional data of the National Institute of Statistics (INS), which were published on Wednesday…

Romania’s Cernavoda nuclear power plant exceeds 6 mln MWh electricity production – (Romania-Insider.com) Romania’s Cernavoda nuclear power plant produced 6.4 million megawatts per hour (MWh) in the first seven months of this year, and 5.9 million MWh were delivered to the country’s electricity grid…

Serbia

Serbia plans new investments in mining industry, energy – (Balkans.com) Serbia's Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior Ivica Dacic said yesterday in Bor that the energy and mining is one of the priorities of the government of Serbia, adding that this area calls for largest investments…

Serbia’s great chance for development in energy sector – (Balkans.com) Serbia's Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior Ivica Dacic said yesterday that Serbia can overcome the crisis with new projects and investments…

Armenia

Armenia applies benefits for Iran-Armenia electricity connection – ( Tehran Times) The Armenian government submitted a special draft law for certain benefits for the electricity line connecting Iran with Armenia has been under the construction. The project will be exempted from Armenian taxes…

European Investment Bank Finances Armenia Water, Border Upgrades – (Bloomberg) The European Investment Bank is lending Armenia almost 37 million euros ($45 million) to help upgrade municipal water and sewage facilities and construct three crossing points on the border with Georgia…

Caspian conflict may hit Europe's energy ambitions – (PS Public Service Europe) Europe's plans to build pipelines to the gas-rich Caspian region may be seriously hampered by an escalation in the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the mountains of Nagorno-Karabakh, reports Francesco Guarascio from the front line…

Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan ups gas production in January-July – (Trend) Azerbaijan generated over 12.2 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in January-July 2012, or 9.4 percent more than the same period of 2011…

Equity capital of Azerbaijan’s energy operator rises to $2,241 bn – (ABC.AZ) Baku, Fineko/abc.az. Registered capital of Azerbaijan’s national energy Operator OJSC Azerenerji rises by 12,8%...

Energy operator of Azerbaijan increases capital by almost 13 percent – (Trend) The State Securities Committee (SSC) of Azerbaijan registered prospectus of ordinary book-entry shares of state-owned company Azerenergy (production and distribution of electricity in the country) for a total of 200.46 million manat, the Committee said on Monday…

Rising Tension Between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan in the Caspian – (Turkish Weekly) In June, the dispute between Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan suddenly became intense despite the positive developments in the recent years between these two countries…

Georgia

Georgian Energy Minister to become Finance Minister – (Kyiv Post) Alexander Khetaguri, who served as Georgia's Energy Minister since 2007 and is now the Energy and Natural Resources Minister, is to be appointed the country's Finance Minister, Georgian Prime Minister Vano Merabishvili said…

Energy and finance get new ministers in Georgia – (Democracy & Freedom Watch) TBILISI, DFWatch – Two ministers have been changed after the new Georgian government was approved. No reason was given for suddenly making the energy minister finance minister, and the head of the local government committee of parliament, energy minister…

Georgian Prime Minister inspects Guria HPP - Georgian Prime Minister Vano Merabishvili gets acquainted with the construction of hydropower stations on the river Bakhvistskali in the village of Mtispiri of Ozurgeti region (Guria region, Western Georgia) on Tuesday…

Georgian energy company Telasi sees net profit fall 33pct in H1 – (Steelguru) Interfax reported that Tbilisi-based power distribution company JSC Telasi which is controlled by Russian energy company Inter RAO UES generated net profit of GEL 11.8 million in the first half of 2012 or 33.3% less than in the same period of last year…

Georgia wants to attract Japanese companies to build Namahvani hydroelectric power plant – (Trend) Georgia is trying to attract the interest of both the Japanese government and business circles towards the on-going large scale construction projects in Georgia, primarily in the energy sector…

Moldova

New EBRD financing for energy efficiency investments in Moldova – (Financial) The EBRD is continuing to support sustainable energy investments in Moldova with a US$ 5 million loan to ProCredit Bank Moldova for on-lending to private companies…

Itron Wins Smart Water Meter Supply Contract For Moldova Utility – (Bloomberg) Itron Inc. (ITRI), a U.S. maker of water meters, won a contract to supply about 11,000 high-efficiency metering devices for a water utility in Moldova…

Russia

Russia's Novatek confirms long-term gas supply deal with Germany's EnBW - (Platts) Russia's largest independent gas producer, Novatek, Tuesday confirmed it has signed a long-term gas supply deal with German utility EnBW…

Norway pulls plug on electricity from Kola Nuclear Power Plant’s ageing reactors – (Bellona) Norway has given the cold shoulder to plans to buy energy from the Murmansk region to power gas recovery operations at the northerly Melkøya field until the two oldest reactors at the Kola Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) are taken out of service in 2018 or 2019…

Power back on in Karelia, Russia – (UPI.Com) SOSNOVETS, Russia, Aug. 10 (UPI) -- Electrical power in Karelia in northwestern Russia, interrupted by heavy rains that flooded a hydroelectric plant, has resumed, a government spokeswoman said…

EBRD extends loan to Russian state power generator and energy trader – (BSR-Russia) The EBRD has committed to lend Russia’s electricity generator and international energy trader  Inter RAO UES 9.6 billion roubles (equivalent to around EUR 240 million) through a five-year convertible loan to help prepare this major state-controlled holding in the Russian power sector for a potential international public offering…

Russia: dispute over Sechin’s new job – (Beyondbrics) Deep divisions have emerged once again this week over Igor Sechin’s bid to remain front and centre of the Russian energy industry…

GAIL eyes stake in Russia's LNG plant – (Economic Times) NEW DELHI: State-owned GAIL India Ltd is interested in buying stake in Russia's planned 10 million tonne LNG plant at Vladivostok on the Pacific coast and import natural gas from the $7-billion project to meet nation's growing energy needs…

Three companies have contracts with Gazprom to import gas to Turkey: official – (Platts) Three of the 13 companies which last week applied to Turkey's energy regulator EPDK to import Russian gas to Turkey via the 6 billion cubic meters a year Transbalkan I pipeline have concluded gas purchase contracts with Gazprom, a spokesman for EPDK told Platts Monday…

Fortum Plans $300 Million Solar Plant In Russia, Kommersant Says – (Bloomberg) Fortum Oyj, Finland’s biggest utility, may build a $300 million solar-power station in Russia, Kommersant reported, citing Evgeny Zagorodny, deputy head of Russian Association of Solar Energy…

Turkey

Turkish firm gets Israeli loan for power production – (Daily News) Despite strained relations between Turkey and Israel following the flotilla incident in May 2010, Turkish and Israeli business ventures continue full steam ahead as witnessed by Zorlu Enerji’s $277 mln natural gas investments in Israel…

Government Incentives Lead to a Wind Energy Boom in Turkey – (OilPrice) Turkish Boom in Wind Power Investments Wind power boasts the second highest share of renewable energy production in Turkey, and its prospects look brighter each day…

rivatization of Hamitabat Power Plant (Turkish Weekly) Turkish privatization Agency recently reannounced  lumpsum sale of 1120 MWe gas fired Hamitabat combined cycle power plant…

Wasabi Energy completes acquisition of 50pct option over Turkish power project – (Proactivceinvestors) Wasabi Energy (LON:WAS ASX:WAS) has finalised the purchase of an option to buy a 50 percent stake in the Tuzla Geothermal Power Project (TGPP) in Turkey…

Football finance: top Turkish club plans hydropower plant – (Beyondbrics) A  top Turkish football club has found a novel way of raising extra revenue, forget scarves and shirts, and corporate entertainment, Trabzonspor is building a hydroelectric power station…

Turkey opens coal field, power plant tender – (Platts) Turkey's state coal authority TKI Thursday opened a tender for the development of the Harmanalani and Davutlar coal fields and the construction and operation of a power plant to burn the lignite produced by the fields…

Energy: Turkey increases licenses for solar plants - (ANSAmed) Turkey's Energy Market Regulatory Authority (EDPK) has decided to start granting licenses for solar power plants starting in June next year, boosting investments in the sector, said the Istanbul office of Ice, the Italian agency promoting companies abroad, citing a study by the Turkish branch of Deloitte…

Nuclear-Plant Plan May Test Turkey’s Trade-Diplomatic Balancing Act – (CNBC.Com) Natural gas and crude oil pipelines crisscross the Turkish landscape, connecting Mideast suppliers with European customers. Someday, if Turkey gets its way, nuclear power plants will instead dot the land – and they’ll supply most of the energy needs of the fossil-fuel poor country, whose economy now ranks 17th globally…

Turkey’s energy dance – (CNN World) Surrounded by a sea of uncertainty, Turkey continues a sustained effort to bolster its ties with East Asia. Ankara has long established relations with the region’s key players, including China, Japan and South Korea. A historical lack of management of these key relationships, though, has led to Turkey underperforming in its attempts to brand itself in the region…

Ukraine

Kiev to opt for ExxonMobil and Shell bid – (Europe) Ukraine is betting that the world’s biggest energy companies will help it unlock oil and gas reserves deep under the Black Sea in an attempt to reduce its dependence on costly Russian fuel imports…

Ukraine ups electricity exports by 73% in seven months of 2012 – (KyivPost) Ukraine increased electricity exports 73.1% year-on-year in January-July 2012 (by 2.25 billion kilowatt-hours) to 5.32 billion kilowatt-hours, a source from the Energy and Coal Industry Ministry has told Interfax-Ukraine…

Ukraine power exports, led by EU supplies, up 68% in July – (Platts) Ukraine's July power exports totaled 1.01 TWh, up 68% from 600.9 GWh in July 2011 and 16% from 873.2 GWh a month earlier, an energy and coal industry ministry official said Tuesday…

Financial Times: Ukraine finally opens its door for energy majors – (KyivPost) According to the Financial Times, Ukrainian officials on Aug. 15 announced that they had “granted a consortium led by ExxonMobil of the US and Royal Dutch Shell, the Anglo-Dutch group, rights to ink a production sharing agreement for hydrocarbon exploration in a vast territory off its Black Sea coast.”..

A green experiment for Chornobyl – (Day.Kiev.UA) Alternative energy projects in the exclusion zone will boost Ukraine’s economy…

Yanukovych signs law on implementing safety standards for united energy system – (KyivPost) Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has signed a law on the implementation of operation safety standards for the united energy system of Ukraine and the quality of energy supply services, according to the presidential press service…

Ukraine selects ExxonMobil/Shell consortium for black sea gas block – (Platts) Ukraine has chosen a consortium led by ExxonMobil to explore and develop the Skifske deepwater natural gas field in the Black Sea, rejecting a bid from Russia's Lukoil, environment and natural resources minister Eduard Stavytskiy said Wednesday…

Ukraine advances in LNG terminal development – (Oil & Gas Eurasia) The Ukrainian government has approved the feasibility study of the construction of the LNG terminal, informed Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Minister Yuriy Boyko…

Ukraine ups gas extraction by 0.9% in seven months of 2012 – (KyivPost) Gas extraction on the Ukrainian territory increased 0.9%, or 104 million cubic meters (mcm), year-on-year to 11.801 billion cubic meters (bcm) in January-July 2012, including a 0.9% increase, or 95.9 mcm, to 11.378 bcm of natural gas, a source at the country's Energy and Coal Industry Ministry has told Interfax-Ukraine…

Ukraine to Privatize Major Thermal Power Plants – (Turkish Weekly) Ukraine plans to privatize the country's four major heat and power plants to reduce Ukraine's energy dependence on expensive Russian natural gas and push the plants to modern coal-burning technologies, according to a government order published on Tuesday, RIA Novosti said…

Ukrainian electricity production up 3.7% in Jan-July – (Cogeneration & On Site Power Production) Electricity production in Ukraine's integrated power system (IPS) grew 3.7% year-on-year to 116.004 billion kWh in the first seven months of 2012, a source at the Energy and Coal Ministry told Interfax…

Ukraine Substitutes Gas With Coal Using Chinese Technology – (PR NewsWire) Ukraine sees substitution of imported gas with coal as a strategic issue, noted the Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykola Azarov…