Goal of the study “Road Map for Renewable Energy Development in Serbia and the Region” conducted by Centre for International Cooperation and Sustainable Development (CIRSD) was to offer a different development model, based on clean energy from both domestic and regional resources, said CIRSD President Vuk Jeremic at the presentation of the study.
Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia Michael Davenport believes Serbia made limited progress in biomass consumption which accounts for 60 per cent of its renewable resources.
Davenport also said there was a series of administrative barriers due to which plans to invest in renewables were abandoned, even though Serbia had potential and could use its biomass, wind, water and solar energy.
Commenting on European Commission Report on candidate countries, Davenport said Serbia was given a recommendation, within Chapter 15, to strengthen the role of energy regulators.
Serbia was advised to further align its legislation with the Union and focus on energy efficiency and its competitiveness on the gas market.
In Chapter 27 – Environment, as Davenport puts it, particular attention is being paid to the implementation of commitments regarding the Paris COP 21 Conference, consolidation of strategic planning and building administrative capacity, in line with EU policy in this area.
The Union recognises the efforts Serbia had made when it comes to feed-in tariffs and promotion of investment in renewables so that it could reach the renewable energy target of at least 27% of final energy consumption by 2020, said Davenport.
It is worth mentioning that the legislation and implementation of regulation still have a long way to go before they create investor-friendly environment, Davenport said.
CIRSD President Vuk Jeremic said that compared to conventional energy resources, share of renewable in Serbia’s energy supply was above the average, but it failed to harness this potential because it lacked investments and know-how.
On the other hand, Jeremic said, Serbia has insufficient resources of conventional energy, gas and oil, adding that the amount at it disposal was nothing compared to its needs.
He thinks transition to renewables cannot be total and momentary, but an opportunity offered by this year should certainly be seized given that earlier this year UN General Assembly had adopted 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, whereas next week is expected to deliver conclusions of the Paris Climate Conference.
If we choose to make a turning point in our development and energy policy, we can expect the support from international organisations, financial institutions, private sector and the EU, Jeremic said.
Authors of the study, published by CIRSD, Maja Turkovic and Ana Brnabic say the use of renewables would bring a series of benefits to Serbia, from attracting investments to mitigation of environmental issues.
