Albania

Ambassador to Albania: Azerbaijan treats TAP and Nabucco West projects equally – (Trend) Azerbaijan is neutral and treats both Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) and Nabucco West projects equally, Ambassador of Azerbaijan to the Republic of Albania with residence in Athens Rahman Mustafayev told in an interview with Tirana Times newspaper…

Albania: Consumers that do not pay electricity will not be supplied by CEZ – (Balkans) Consumers that do not pay electricity will not be supplied by CEZ. All citizens that result debtors and those that have made illegal connections will be left without power…

 Albanian co Erma launches 1.5 mln euro HPP Carshova - econ min – (HydroWorld) Albanian company Erma launched a new 1.5 mln euro ($1.8 million) hydro power plant in the south of the country, the economy ministry said…  

Bulgaria

Bulgaria appoints new chiefs of state grid operator, mines – (Focus) Bulgarian Minster of Economy, Energy and Tourism Delyan Dobrev accepted the resignation of Ivo Lefterov as executive director of the National Electricity Company (NEK) and dismissed Evgeni Stykov as executive director of Maritsa Iztok Mines EAD, the press office of the ministry announced…

Bulgaria's power grid bottlenecks to limit connection of new RES facilities until 2016 – (Utility Products) Bulgaria's power grid undercapacity will sharply limit until 2016 the opportunities for the connection of new electricity generation facilities running on renewable energy sources (RES), the country's state-owned power grid operator NEK said…

Bulgaria energy minister: Interconnector with Romania gives security of deliveries -  (Focus) “The interconnector between Bulgaria and Romania will provide security for the natural gas deliveries to our country,” Bulgarian Minister of Economy, Energy and Tourism Delyan Dobrev said at the groundbreaking ceremony for the start of the construction of the interconnector in the Bulgarian section, the press office of the ministry announced…

Bulgaria to Wrap Up Ongoing Privatization Procedures by end-2012 – (Novinite) Finance Minister Simeon Djankov has instructed the Privatization and Post-Privatization Control Agency (PPCA) to wrap up all ongoing privatization procedures by end-2012…

Bulgaria's Gas Link with Romania to Be Ready by End-May 2013 – (Oil & Gas Eurasia) Bulgaria's 25-km gas interconnector with Romania will be completed and functional by the end of May 2013, according to Kiril Temelkov, CEO of the Bulgartransgaz energy company…

Bulgaria to Plug In New Green Energy Plants after 2017 (Novinite) 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 price in Bulgaria to be increased again by another 5% next year: expert - (Focus) “Next year electricity price in Bulgaria will be increased again by another 5%,” Petar Ivanov, expert with the Bulgarian Energy Holding (BEH), forecasted for Bulgaria on Air TV…

Utility Says Electricity Theft on the Rise in W Bulgaria –(Novinite) Theft of electric power in western Bulgaria has risen with 28% for the first half of 2012, according to data by utility CEZ that services the area…

Bosnia

Bosnian state energy company exports electricity through Rudnap Group - (Balkans) Net profit of Electric Industry of Bosnia and Herzegovina achieved in 2011 was almost four times lower than anticipated: instead of 6.5 million KM, as company director Elvedin Grabovica claimed, it turned out to be only 1.4 million KM!..

Turkish firms eye Bosnian energy – (Daily News) Leading Turkish energy sector companies are planning to make investments in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is rich in renewable energy potential and water resources…

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…

Croatia

Croatian media alter South Stream's route - There has been no confirmation from Russia’s Gazprom so far of reports that the South Stream gas pipeline will run though Croatia. Earlier, Croatian mass media alleged that the pipeline’s initial route could be altered…

Croatia May Replace Hungary in Gazprom's South Stream –( 4-Traders) Russian energy group OAO Gazprom (>> Gazprom OAO) is in active negotiations to take its south Stream natural gas pipeline heading for Austria through Croatia instead of Hungary, the Jutarnji List newspaper reports Tuesday…

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…

Kosovo

Head of Kosovar Energy Union presses for labor protections in World Bank projects – (Bank information Center) Independent Syndicate of Energy of Kosovo (SPEK) meets with World Bank and U.S. government officials to discuss the effects of a new coal power plant project and the privatization of Kosovo's electricity grid…

THE CITIZENS CONCERNED WITH SEVERE ELECTRICITY REDUCTIONS – (M-M@G) Even after the notice from KEK officials that the situation electricity will be repaired during the day, the situation has deteriorated even more…

Macedonia

Macedonia with lowest salaries, highest electricity price – (Focus) Electricity price in Macedonia is probably the lowest compared to the prices in the countries in the region but the constant hikes are about to gradually turn Macedonia into the country with the most expensive electricity price and bring it in line with the European level, writes Macedonian Utrinski Vesnik daily…

Macedonia presents a new FiT system for RES investors – (Balkans) If you want to build a solar power plant and profit from it, think about it twice. The funds that the state provides for a favorable tariff, or for a higher subsidized price of electricity, as a motivation for the use of renewable energy sources, are already distributed?..

FYR Macedonia’s PCC NEW HYDRO company green kwh project overview – (Balkans) 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…

EBRD loan links FYROM to Black Sea - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) signed an agreement with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) to provide €46.4 million financing for the modernisation of a 30 km link from Kumanovo to Beljakovce which represents section 1 of the country’s railway corridor VIII –Eastern section…

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…

Romania Plans To Sell 15% Holding In Energy Company Oltenia – (Bloomberg) Romania plans to sell a minority stake in a newly formed energy company, Complexul Energetic Oltenia SA to boost its capital, the country’s economy ministry said today…

Romanian Energy Stake Sales ‘Slightly Delayed,’ Official Says – (Bloomberg) Romania agreed with the International Monetary Fund to “slightly delay” the deadlines to start the stake sales in energy companies, said Alexandru Sandulescu, an Economy Ministry official…

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 (August 13 )…

Romanian Energy Sector Facing New Tax – (Taxation) BUCHAREST – 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 on fence of gas pipelines – (UPI) Romania views the Nabucco gas pipeline a priority but hasn't taken a formal stance against the alternate South Stream project, the country's president said…

Hidroelectrica’s Power Output to Drop 11% in 2012 on Drought - Romania’s hydropower generator Hidroelectrica SA will see its output decline 11 percent this year from a year ago as a prolonged drought lowered water levels and prompted the company to cut electricity supplies…

Romania’s Cernavoda nuclear power plant exceeds 6 mln MWh electricity production – (Romania-Insider) 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 institutes energy public tenders – (UPI) The new Serbian government said this week it hopes to stimulate the country's renewable energy sector by instituting public tenders for energy permits…

Serbia’s EPS plans a new strategy for power market opening and electricity trading – (Balkans) The evaluation of EPS business capabilities in a liberalized market project is a part of the restructuring project: Preparing for competition and power market opening…

Serbia To Import Power Directly, Bypass Traders, Beta Reports – (Bloomberg) Serbia will cut out electricity traders in future imports as the government estimates how much power the country will need this year amid drought that reduced production at hydro plants, Beta news agency reported, citing the energy minister…

Energy permits for renewable energy sources in Serbia will be granted through public tenders – (Balkans) Serbia's Minister of Energy, Development and Environmental Protection Zorana Mihajlovic yesterday announced that energy permits for renewable energy sources in Serbia will from now on be granted through public tenders…

Different ways of collecting claims in Serbia's EPS and Srbijagas considered – (Balkans) Serbia's Minister of Energy, Development and Environmental Protection Zorana Mihajlovic said that the Ministry is considering reintroducing two hours of cheaper electricity every day, including Sundays…

Armenia

Yerevan to Host Meeting of Turkmen-Armenian Intergovernmental Commission – (Turkish Weekly) A delegation from Turkmenistan will go to Yerevan on September 5 to attend the fourth meeting of the intergovernmental Turkmen-Armenian commission on economic cooperation, an official Turkmen source said…

Jahangiryan Family Mini-Hydro Plant Decimates Tezh River – (hetq) Summertime visitors to Meghradzor, a hamlet in Kotayk Marz, will be hard-pressed to take a cool dip in the local Tezh River…

Mini Hydro Plants Belonging to Bishop and MP are Inspected and Fined – (hetq) Readers won’t be surprised to learn that in the past two years the RA Environmental Inspectorate has only managed to inspect two of the small scale hydro-plants that are popping up like mushrooms in 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…

Man found drowned in Hrazdan hydro power plant canal – (News.AM) A man was found drowned in the canal of Armenia’s Hrazdan hydro power plant…

Azerbaijan

No Equation Possible in Eurasia in Energy and Transportation without Turkic Republics, Says Davutoglu – ( Turkish Weekly) Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Wednesday said that no equation was possible in Eurasia in energy and transportation fields without Turkic republics…

Azeri energy minister backs Nabucco West gas pipeline – (Reuters) Azerbaijan's best bet for piping natural gas to western Europe from the Caspian Sea is the Nabucco West project, Industry and Energy Minister Natik Aliyev said on Tuesday ahead of a formal decision…

SOCAR talks energy with Kyrgyz leaders – (UPI) Azerbaijan state energy company SOCAR revealed this week it recently hosted top-level energy discussions with Kyrgyzstan officials on economic development…

Nabucco West still competes with TAP in supply of Azerbaijani gas to Europe – (Trend) Nabucco West project is still in the running for delvery of Azerbaijani gas to the European markets, Reuters reported with the reference to director of SOCAR's representative office in Germany Elmar Mamedov…

State Company on Alternative Energy interferes with its ideas to waste management projects in Azerbaijan – (ABC.AZ) Baku, Fineko/abc.az. State Company on Alternative and Renewable Energy formed on the basis of cognominal State agency (ABEMDA) under Industry and Energy Ministry of Azerbaijan joins the projects aimed at waste management…

Azerbaijan’s Socar will become the largest single foreign investor in Turkey within six years – (Balkans) Azerbaijan’s state-run energy company Socar will become the largest single foreign investor in Turkey within six years, according to Kenan Yavuz, the chief executive Turkey Enerji A.Ş., the local subsidiary of the Baku-based company…

Capacity of largest thermal power plant in South Caucasus increased – (Trend) In January-July 2012 Azerbaijan Thermal Power Plant (TPP) generated 4.65 billion kilowatt hours of electricity, Azerenergy (electricity generation and distribution in Azerbaijan) said on Wednesday…

BP wants to join TANAP oil pipeline – (Hurriyet Daily News) BP is following developments in the Trans-Anatolia Pipeline (TANAP) project between Turkey and Azerbaijan and supports the project, Bud Fackrell, president of the British energy giant’s unit in Turkey, said…

This July Azerbaijan resumed financial power export – (ABC.AZ) Baku, Fineko/abc.az. In July, Azerbaijan, which keeps on remaining a net exporter of electric power for the fourth year running, almost  resumed financial cost of power export…

Georgia

Georgia’s hurricane leaves 37,000 subscribers without electricity – (Trend) The disaster in the Kakheti region of Eastern Georgia has left 37,000 subscribers without electricity…

Problems in energy sector discussed in Georgia - (Trend) Existing problems in the energy sector were discussed in Georgia…

Georgian Prime Minister inspects Guria HPP – (Trend) 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…

New Ministers of Energy and Finance take office in Georgia – (Trend) New Ministers of Energy and Finance of Georgia have assumed the office today. Georgian Prime Minister Vano Merabishvili introduced Vakhtang Balavadze and Alexander Khetaguri appointed to these positions and gave them new instructions…

Moldova

Moldovan premier to negotiate in Moscow in September –(Kyiv Post)  Chisinau - Moldovan Prime Minister Vlad Filat will visit Moscow on September 10-11 at the invitation of his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev…

Russia

Gazprom Confirms It Is In Talks With Croatia On South Stream – (Fox Business) Russian energy group OAO Gazprom (GAZP.RS) confirmed Tuesday it is in talks with Croatian peer Plinacro d.o.o. over the South Stream natural gas pipeline…

Gazprom and Ukrainian Minister discuss preparation for autumn/winter period – (PennEnergy) The Gazprom headquarters hosted today a working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Company's Management Committee and Yury Boiko, Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Minister…

Unscheduled Russian Power-Down Limits Capacity in Baltics – (ERR News) The power transmission capacity between Estonia and Latvia is more limited than normal due to an uncoordinated maintenance shutdown of a 330-kilowatt power line in Russia…

EnergyO Solutions Russia AB : EOS Russia - Half Year report 1 January - 30 June 2012 – (4-Traders) On August 6, 2012, the parent company called an extraordinary shareholder's meeting with the purpose to acquire a mandate from the shareholders to engage in a synthetic share buy-back programme, with the intention of buying back up to 29.9% of outstanding shares in EOS Russia…

Russian agents focused on energy and industry in 2011 – (Prague daily Monitor)  Prague, Aug 22 (CTK) - Agents of the Russian intelligence services were primarily interested in information on the completion of the Temelin nuclear plant in the Czech Republic in 2011, the BIS Czech counter-intelligence service says in its annual report released yesterday…

Russian Federation : Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation Visited TATNEFT  – (Equities) Alexander Novak, Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation, visited TATNEFT on August 21 within the frame of his working visit to the Republic of Tatarstan…

Russia Invests in Diesel as Putin’s Oil Boom Peaks - Russia is cementing its status as Europe’s foremost diesel supplier as President Vladimir Putin seeks to shore up economic growth with record investment in the refining industry…

RUXX analytics announces major changes expected in Russia's oil and gas sector – (Oil & Gas Eurasia) Energy price fluctuations and ruble devaluation along with political instability in Russia are likely to cause major changes in the Russian energy sector…

Exillon Energy drilling fifth development well – (Stock Market Wire) - Russia-focused Exillon Energy is drilling a fifth development well following the success of is latest well in West Siberia…

Russia looks to Kyrgyzstan deals – (NewEurope) Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov recently announced that President Vladimir Putin expressed interest in sending a high-level delegation to Kyrgyzstan to discuss military, energy and general economic issues…

ConocoPhillips gets $400M for Russia joint venture – (R&D mag)ConocoPhillips it sold its interest in a Russian joint venture to Russia's Lukoil for about $400 million…

OVL keen on stake in Russia's Arctic oil and gas fields – (The Economic Times) ONGC Videsh Ltd, the overseas arm of state-owned Oil & Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), is eyeing stake in Russia's ambitious Arctic Ocean oil and gas projects with US supermajor ExxonMobil and Italian energy giant ENI…

Turkey

Turkey’s first grid-connected PV plant - A Turkish solar firm has announced the installation of the nation’s first grid-connected PV power plant…

Genel Energy secures '6 or 7 years of oil' for Turkey in Miran oil deal – (Equities) Oil firm Genel Energy acquired a majority stake in Iraqi Kurdistan's Miran oilfields after inking a $450 million deal with English energy firm Heritage Oil on Tuesday, providing Genel with a 51 percent share in extraction rights in a region that the company says will secure six or seven years of oil for Turkey…

Privatization of Hamitabat Power Plant – (Turkish Weekly) Turkish privatization Agency recently reannounced  lumpsum sale of 1120 MWe gas fired Hamitabat combined cycle power plant. It was tendered earlier but there was only one qualified bidder, not enough to close the sales, so it was cancelled…

Domestic Investment in Energy Sector of Turkey Increases by 40 Percent – (Turkish Weekly) Turkey's domestic investment in the energy sector of the country in the period from January to May 2012 amounted to 545.1 lira, the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources of Turkey said on Wednesday…

Turkish firm grabs Kurdish gas assets – (UPI) Turkish company Genel Energy announced it signed a deal to take on additional interests in a natural gas exploration block in the Kurdish north of Iraq…

GE Completes Sustainable Wind Energy Farm in Turkey – (justmeans) General Electric and Gama Holding have completed its second wind farm project in Turkey…

Gas price in Balkans cheaper than Europe – (Daily News) The natural gas prices in Balkan countries, including Turkey, is cheaper that the European average with even Bosnians, consumers of the most expensive gas in the region, pay less than EU’s 0.64 euros per cubic meter…

Turkey is in Talks to Build Second Nuclear Power Plant – (Turkish Weekly) Turkey is negotiating with Japan, Canada, China and South Korea to build a second nuclear power plant, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Taner Yildiz said, the newspaper Sabah reported…

Turkey, Europe’s fastest growing economy needs more Crude Oil – (Ebeling Heffernan) Turkey’s dependence on imported Crude Oil is dampening its growth, and will to continue doing so as the country’s prosperity increases, regional analysts and energy experts say…

Turkish company completes initial work on LNG ''GasPak'' project – (Business reporter) Global Energy Infrastructure Limited (GEI) Turkey has completed initial work to construct $350- 450 million integrated LNG ''GasPak'' project for Pakistan. Sources said that a meeting was held between Ahmed Caliskan, Chairman GEI and Chairman Board of Investment to discuss various aspects of the project…

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…

Ukraine

Ukraine increased electricity exports by 73% - (ForUm) During January - July of 2012, Ukraine exported 5 320.3 million kWh of electricity, which is by 2 247.2 million kWh or by 73.1% more than in 2011, the press service of the Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry reported…

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…

Yanukovych wants deals between Ukrainian, Russian power engineering firms – (Kyiv Post) Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych (center) has called for partnership between Ukrainian and Russian manufacturers of electricity generating equipment "where we can see that it would be profitable economically" but argued that takeovers of Ukrainian enterprises by Russian firms are unacceptable…

Green energy financed at cost of other branches – (forum) Today, the share of green energy in the Ukrainian energy system is less than 1%, despite the years of talks about the prospects of solar and wind power in electricity generating…

Cabinet instructs Energy Ministry to sign contracts with gas companies on state pipelines management – (KyivPost) The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has instructed the Energy and Coal Industry Ministry to sign contracts with regional gas supply and gasification companies on the management of state assets used in their license activities…

Ukraine badly needs waste nuclear fuel storage facility, says Emergencies Ministry – (Interfax) Ukraine needs to give a serious thought to building a centralized storage facility for waste nuclear fuel since waste fuel from Ukrainian nuclear power plants (NPPs), which is temporary stored in the Russian Federation will start to come back from 2013, the Emergencies Ministry said…

Yanukovych calling for development of small-scale power generation and small aircraft – (kyivPost) Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych supports the development of small-scale power generation…

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's Jan-Jul coal output up 5.5% on year: ministry - (Platts)  Ukraine's coal output increased 5.5% year-on-year, or by 2.6 million metric tons, to 50.13 million mt in January-July, up from 47.53 million mt produced a year ago, the energy and coal industry ministry said Friday…

Yanukovych: Small generators are priority for Ukraine’s energy system – (Forum) President Viktor Yanukovych notes the importance of the development of small hydropower plants to ensure the stability of the country's energy system…

Boiko and Miller discussed uninterrupted gas transit to Europe – (Forum) Energy and coal industry minister of Ukraine Yuri Boiko and the CEO of the Gazprom OAO Russian gas company Alexei Miller discussed the issues of ensuring uninterrupted transit of Russian gas to Europe in the coming autumn and winter by the Naftogaz Ukraine gas company…

Ukraine Looks to Foreign Investors To Shake Russian Gas Dependence – (Oil & Gas Eurasia) Few expected a breakthrough in the renegotiation of Ukraine’s burdensome gas contract with Russia when President Vladimir Putin met Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich in Yalta on July 12…