Albania

Albania approves MOU with Montenegro and Croatia, for their support and cooperation for the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline – (Balkans)  Albania's Council of Ministers approved a Memorandum of Understanding with the government of Montenegro and Croatia, for their support and cooperation for the realization of the project of Trans-Adriatic Pipeline and the Ionian Adriatic Pipeline project…

CEZ informs Albania of its decision to seek compensation for damage – (Balkans) CEZ notified the Albanian party of its decision to seek compensation for damage incurred due to its non-protected investment in the power distribution company of CEZ Shpërndarje, with the International Arbitration Tribunal according to the Energy Charter Treaty... 

lbania Premier Berisha inaugurated two hydroelectric power plants on the Jackson River – (Balkans) ALbania's Premier Berisha inaugurated two hydroelectric power plants on the Jackson River, the mouth of Vanave, in the district of Kukes…

Bulgaria

Bulgarian-Turkish Working Groups to Speed Up Bilateral Energy Projects – (Novinite) Asen Vasilev, caretaker Minister of Economy, Energy and Tourism, and his Turkish counterpart Taner Yildiz have agreed on the creation of two working groups tasked with fast-tracking the main energy projects between the two countries…

Electricity production of wind and solar farms in Bulgaria restricted – (Focus) At the request of Bulgarian Electricity System Operator there will be a restriction on the electricity production of wind and solar farms in Bulgaria on May 12, 2013…

Bulgaria's Energy Sector Generated 79.9% of GHG Emissions in 2011 – (Novinite) Bulgaria's energy sector remains one of the major sources of emissions of sulfur dioxide and the main source of nitrous oxide emissions, according to a report for 2011…

Raiffeisenbank, EBRD sign on sustainable energy in Bulgaria – (New Europe) The Bulgarian branch of the Austrian Raiffeisenbank has signed a second line of credit with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), allowing it to expand financing for sustainable energy investment by private companies in Bulgaria…

Czech Utility CEZ Likely to Win Over Bulgarian Regulator – (Novinite) Czech-owned utility CEZ AS (BAACEZ.PR), one of three foreign power companies whose prices provoked nationwide protests in Bulgaria and brought down the government earlier this year, looks set to retain its operating license there…

Bulgaria: CEZ to Keep License – (FriedINews) Former PM Borisov had been critical of CEZ in Bulgaria. Energy Minister Vasilev annouced the power supplier would not lose its license…

Bulgaria, Turkey working on energy projects – (Setimes) Bulgaria and Turkey will set up two working groups to move forward on top priority energy projects between the two countries, Bulgarian Minister of Economy, Energy and Tourism Asen Vasilev and his Turkish counterpart Taner Yildiz agreed in Istanbul…

Croatia

Croatian power provider posts net profit of HRK 71.2 mln – (Dalje) Hrvatska Elektroprivreda (HEP Group), the national company engaged in electricity production and distribution as well as in heat supply and gas distribution, netted a consolidated profit of HRK 71.2 million in 2012, as against 7.8 million kuna in 2011, according to its financial statement issued via the Zagreb Stock Exchange on Thursday…

Greens appeal to PM and EBRD to scrap Ombla project – (Dalje) About 40 civil society organisations from throughout Croatia and international organisations, including Friends of the Earth International, Bankwatch and Justice and Environment, have sent letters to Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic and the President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Suma Chakrabarti, appealing that they abandon the plan for the construction of a harmful and expensive hydroelectric power plant on the Ombla river in the Dubrovnik area of southern Croatia…

The workers of HEP and HRT got more than 8 million HRK for overtime – (Dalje) HEP group and HRT are the holders of the record for overtime pay in 2011. This is what the research, done by the portal Poslovni.hr, showed…

Kosovo

Donors pledge $200 million to Kosovo energy clean-up – (Reuters) - International donors pledged on Tuesday to give 154 million euros ($200 million) in aid to Kosovo to help it shut an outdated and highly polluting coal-fired power plant, boost energy efficiency and improve its energy mix…

European energy chief puts forward case for funding coal – (Guardian) EBRD chief Riccardo Puliti warns Europe not to be hasty in adopting 'ideological' policy on carbon intensity funding…

Montenegro

EBRD loan to support development of Montenegro's local and regional electricity market – (Balkans) Key investments in the power sector of Montenegro, which are expected to also strengthen regional trade and exchange, will be supported by the EBRD with a loan of up to €60 million…

EBRD supports Lastva-Pljevlja transmission line in Montenegro – (EBR) The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has announced a loan of EUR60m to support the Lastva-Pljevlja transmission line project in Montenegro…

EBRD to help upgrade Montenegro’s power sector – (New Europe) On 8 May, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) approved key investments in the power sector of Montenegro…

New transmission line for Montenegro – (Financial) Key investments in the power sector of Montenegro, which are expected to also strengthen regional trade and exchange, will be supported by the EBRD with a loan of up to €60 million…

Romania

Romania to host meeting of Nabucco energy ministers – (News.az) 1news.az reports with reference to Enerji Enstitutusu newspaper, the statement came from Romanian Energy Minister Konstantin Nita, who is in Turkey at the invitation of the country’s Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Taner Yildiz…

Romania Seeks Energy Independence – (FriedINews) The Black Sea has huge deposits in gas which Romania wants to use to achieve energy autonomy. Energy independence is one of the key words nowadays…

Solar Projects Offer Bright Outlook in Romania – (CP Executive) Conergy, the Hamburg-based energy company, is expanding its footprint in Romania with the development of a 2- megawatt solar power plant in the Slobozia region. Currently under construction on a 10-acre site, the facility will include over 8,000 Conergy modules fabricated in Germany…

Wind remains king in Romania with over 2,000MW of incentivized installation – (Balkans) With the government planning to cut the green certificate support scheme for some renewable technologies from July, a look at the specifics of photovoltaic and biomass projects, in which investors’ interest has accelerated in the past two years…

Romania: Conergy builds 2 MW solar plant – (PV Magazine) Conergy is currently building a further 2 megawatt solar power plant in the Romanian region of Slobozia. It was only in January this year that the PV solution and service provider had announced its entry into the market in the Eastern European country with a 2.2 megawatt solar park…

Serbia

Srbijagas Reform Is Good For Serbia – Zorana Mihajlovic – (In Serbia) The plan to restructure, that is reform Srbijagas, is good for Serbia and its people, Minister of Energy Zorana Mihajlovic said on Wednesday, adding she expected it to be adopted soon…

Serbia to Set Up National Day-Ahead Electricity Market by 2014 (Publics) Serbian electricity grid operator said it was keen on coupling with other regional markets..

Investment chief warns against ideological policy for energy – (Penn Energy) The head of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has warned that the world cannot afford to be ideological when it comes to energy policy and says affordability and security of supply must be taken into account…

Srbijagas Restructuring Plan Received Positive Opinions – (In Serbia) The Ministry of Energy has received positive opinions from the other ministries in the Serbian government regarding its Srbijagas restructuring plan and expects it will be approved soon, Energy Minister Zorana Mihajlovic told Tanjug in an interview…

Serbia plans a power bourse in 2014 – (Reuters) Serbia plans to set up a spot power exchange in the first quarter of 2014 with the aim of later joining it with other regional day-ahead markets, an official of its grid operator EMS said on Wednesday…

Armenia

PSRC begins revision of electricity price – (ARKA) Armenia's Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) said it began at  its own initiative a revision of the price of electricity…

Asian Development Bank : Armenia's Aging Hydropower Plants Get New Life with ADB Private Sector Loan – (4 Trader) The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is helping a private sector company in Armenia rehabilitate its hydropower plants to restore the country's renewable energy capacity and improve the power plants' reliability and safety…

Power Struggle: Villagers say HPPs being exploited at expense of their resources – (Armenia Now) Small hydropower plants built and yet to-be-built on rivers of Armenia have raised a discontent among the local population of Armenian provinces. Villagers warn that hydropower plants (HPPs) exhaust irrigation water, challenging farming and harming the ecosystems…

Belarus expects skilled Armenian nuclear specialists to help run its first nuclear power plant – (ARKA) The visiting president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, said today he expects Armenian authorities to send at least a dozen of skilled experts to Minsk to help it run the first Belarusian nuclear power plant, which is under construction…

Azerbaijan

SOCAR: Route of Azerbaijani gas supplies to Europe to be determined by late June – (Trend) The final decision on choosing the route of Azerbaijani gas supplies to Europe will be made by late June 2013, SOCAR chief Rovnag Abdullayev told journalists today…

Azerbaijani President: Nuclear power plant in Armenia presents big threat for region – (Trend) President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on Tuesday met Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Yukiya Amano in Vienna…

ADB ready to fund alternative energy in Azerbaijan – (Azernews) The Asian Development Bank is ready to allocate some $40 million to Azerbaijan for developing alternative and renewable energy sources, ADB reported on its official website on May 10…

SOCAR to continue oil transit through Baku-Novorossiysk pipeline if economically feasible – (Trend) SOCAR (State Oil Company of Azerbaijan) will continue the transit of oil through the Baku-Novorossiysk pipeline if it is economically feasible, the head of SOCAR Rovnag Abdullayev told reporters…

Azerbaijan did not receive notification of termination of oil transit agreement from Russia – (Trend) Azerbaijan has not received any official notification from Russia about terminating the agreement on the transit of Azerbaijani oil through Russia via the Baku-Novorossiysk pipeline, a source in SOCAR told Trend on Tuesday…

Nabucco West to sign shareholder agreement with Shah Deniz partners in coming days – (Azernews) The consortium of Nabucco West gas pipeline project is expected to sign a shareholder agreement in the coming days with the partners on the development of the giant Shah Deniz gas condensate field in Azerbaijan's sector of the Caspian Sea, whose gas is considered as the main source for Nabucco West…

Georgia

Georgian energy distribution company’s new head appointed – (Trend) Jaromir Tesar was appointed the CEO of the Energo-Pro Georgia Company in Georgia. Tesar has previously served as the chairman of the supervisory board of the Energo-Pro Georgia Company, the company told Trend on Tuesday… 

Tata Power, Clean Energy Invest and IFC Team Up for Georgia Hydro Projects – (Civil.ge) Tata Power, India's largest integrated private power utility, Norway-based Clean Energy Invest AS and IFC InfraVentures signed an agreement last week to develop hydro power projects in Georgia’s Black Sea region of Adjara with an aggregate capacity of 400MW and an estimated cost of USD 700 million…

Georgia still interested in Azerbaijani gas - Mr Kakha Kaladze – (Steel Guru) Mr Kakha Kaladze energy minister of Georgian said that Georgia's intention to continue cooperation with Azerbaijan in the sphere of energy. Georgia is still interested in Azerbaijani gas deliveries…

Indian company to implement hydropower projects in Georgia – (AzerNews) India`s largest multinational power company Tata Power, the Norwegian Clean Energy and IFC InfraVentures Foundation are launching the implementation of hydropower projects in Georgia's Black Sea region of Adjara…

Russia

RusHydro secures loan from Asian Development Bank – (Stock Market Wire) JSC RusHydro has secured a $25m loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). It has been provided to International Energy Corp. (IEC), a subsidiary of RusHydro, and is earmarked for rehabilitation of the Sevan-Hrazdan cascade of hydropower plants in Armenia, built between 1930s and 1960s…

Russia annuls Azeri oil transit deal – (UPI) The Russian government said it terminated a 1996 deal to transport oil from Azerbaijan through its pipeline systems from Baku…

Putin Backs Gas Power for Russia’s Transport – (Energy Tribune) President Vladimir Putin threw his weight behind a drive to fuel more Russian vehicles with cleaner-burning and cheaper natural gas on Tuesday, saying the economic and environmental benefits were clear…

Shares of Russian metallurgy and electricity giants plummet on key index exit – (RT) Russian metallurgy and electricity giants have seen their shares nosedive up to 10% after being kicked out of the exclusive MSCI index. Analysts say even more losses lay ahead for the companies…

While Russia's electricity exports decline, imports rise – (Russia Beyond the headlines) Russia’s electricity exports are in decline for the fourth consecutive quarter. A contributing factor are the high costs for electricity at home and Nord Pool Spot's cheaper prices…

INTER RAO EES OAO : The Board Announces the Date of the Annual General Meeting of JSC INTER RAO UES – (4 Trader) On May 16, 2013, the Board of JSC INTER RAO UES announced the Annual General Meeting and set its date for June 25, 2013. The date for determination of shareholder eligibility to attend the Annual General Meeting is May 20, 2013…

Turkey

Largest wind farm built in Turkey – (Renewables Biz) The largest wind farm with installed capacity of 143 MW was built in the Turkish province of Balikesir, The Lira newspaper said on Monday…

Turkey’s biggest wind farm starts producing electricity – (Energy Live News) The biggest wind farm in Turkey has started generating electricity, thanks to the help provided by a London-based bank…

EBRD open major Turkish wind farm – (Re News) The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has opened the gates at Enerjisa’s 142.5MW Bares wind farm in Balikesir, Turkey…

Turkish and Chinese companies ink $2.4 billion coal-based power plant deal – (Daily News) Turkish Hattat Holding and China-based Harbin Electric International signed a deal to build a coal-based power plant in northwestern Turkey on May 10…

Turkey’s Largest Wind Plant to Power 170,000 Homes – (Green Prophet) Turkey’s largest wind power plant has broken ground and is expected to generate enough clean energy to electrify up to 170,000 homes…

Turkey hopes $7.2 billion gas bill cut with nukes – (Daily News) Turkey’s energy import need will be cut by one-third and its mounting energy consumption will be covered as three slated nuclear plants in the country will become operational, Turkish prime minister has said…

Turkey proposes to help Iraq construct new oil, gas pipelines – (EBR) The government of Turkey said that it is willing to help Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) member Iraq to build more pipelines to export its crude to world markets…

Ukraine

Ukraine boosts electricity exports 26% in 2013 – (KyivPost) Ukraine boosted electricity exports 26% year-on-year in January-April to 3.159 billion kilowatt-hours, a source at the Energy and Coal Industry Ministry told Interfax-Ukraine…

Energy minister: RWE interested in using Ukrainian underground gas storage facilities – (Kyiv Post) Germany's RWE is interested in using Ukraine's underground gas storage facilities, Minister of Energy and Coal Industry of Ukraine Eduard Stavytsky said at a press conference in Kyiv on May 13…

Ukraine Imports Record Amount of Gas from the EU – (PR Newswire) Ukraine imported over 120 million cubic meters of natural gas in April 2013 from Poland alone, reported the press service of the public gas transporting company Ukrtransgaz…

Ukraine to import 30-32.5 bcm of gas in 2013, says Stavytsky – (Interfax) Ukraine in 2013 will import 30-32.5 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas from other countries, Minister of Energy and Coal Industry of Ukraine Eduard Stavytsky said at a press conference in Kyiv on Monday…

Ukraine taking steps in renewables – (Daily News) The EBRD continues promoting and supporting renewable energy projects in Ukraine aimed at reducing the environmental impact of traditional power generation…

Push to privatise Ukraine’s Naftogaz gains speed – (EurActiv) It appears that Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovich has already taken the political decision to cede control over the transit pipeline network to Gazprom, in exchange for lower gas prices and long-term gas transit guarantees, writes Wojciech Konończuk…

Ukraine and Poland Could Be Future Leaders in Shale Gas Production – (FriedINews) Management consultant enterprise A. T. Kearney regards Poland and Ukraine as the future European leaders in the productin of shale gas…

Ukrainian state mines lose UAH 5 billion in Jan to Apr – (Coal Guru) The losses of the coalmines management of the Energy and Coal Industry Ministry of Ukraine from coal production in January to April 2013 came to UAH 4.78 billion…

Ukraine starts test gas imports from Slovakia – (Interfax) Ukraine on Wednesday, May 15, started importing natural gas from Slovakia in test mode, Minister of Energy and Coal Industry of Ukraine Eduard Stavytsky said in Kyiv on Wednesday…

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