Western Balkans citizens legally resident in EU equal to 14% of region’s population
International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) has stripped Belarus of the right to hold the World Championship this year
Alexei Navalny arrested on arrival as he returns home
LONG READ: The oligarch problem
Russia's National Welfare Fund accounts for almost 12% of GDP
Police arresting activists ahead of Saturday’s demonstration in support of Navalny
Biden seeking a five-year extension to START II missile treaty
Russian consumer confidence index drops q/q, y/y in 4Q20
Western Balkans and Ukraine urged to scrutinise coal subsidies
Oligarchs trying to derail Ukraine’s privatisation programme, warns the head of Ukraine’s State Property Fund
Private finance mobilised by development banks up 9% to $175bn in 2019
VISEGRAD BLOG: Central Europe's populists need a new strategy for Biden
OUTLOOK 2021 Lithuania
EBRD says loan to Estonia’s controversial Porto Franco project was never disbursed
Czech MPs pass protectionist food law in violation of EU rules
M&A in Central and Eastern Europe fell 16% in value in 2020, says CMS report
Hungarian vehicle makers hit by supply chain shortage
COVID-19 and Trump’s indifference helped human rights abusers in 2020
OUTLOOK 2021 Poland
OUTLOOK 2021 Slovakia
BRICKS & MORTAR: Rosier future beckons for CEE retailers after year of change and disruption
FDI inflows to CEE down 58% in 1H20 but rebound expected
Albania needs reforms for e-commerce to thrive, says World Bank
BALKAN BLOG: US approach to switch from quick-fix dealmaking to experience and cooperation
Corona-induced slump in global clothing sector dragged down Albania’s 2020 exports
Bosnia's exports in 2020 amounted to BAM10.5bn, trade deficit to BAM6.3bn
Bulgaria's Biodit first company to IPO on new BEAM market
Bulgaria’s government considers gradual easing of COVID-related restrictions
Sofia-based LAUNCHub Ventures holds first close of new fund on €44mn
Spring lockdown caused spike in online transactions in Croatia
ING: Growth in the Balkans: from zero to hero again?
Labour demand down 28% y/y in Croatia in 2020
EBRD investments reach record €11bn in pandemic-struck 2020
OUTLOOK 2021 Moldova
Storming parliaments: New Europe's greatest hits
World Bank revises projection for Moldova’s 2020 GDP decline to 7.2%
Montenegrins say state administration is most corrupt institution
North Macedonia plans to cut personal income tax in IT sector to zero in 2023
Romania government to pursue “ambitious” timetable for justice reforms
OUTLOOK 2021 Romania
OUTLOOK 2021 Slovenia
Slovenia’s opposition files no-confidence motion against Jansa cabinet
Slovenia’s government to release funds to news agency STA after EU pressure
UK Moneyhub picks Slovenia for post-Brexit European base
D’S Damat franchise deals ‘show Turkey’s hard-pressed mall operators becoming their own tenants’
Turkey’s benchmark rate held as concerns over faltering recovery come to fore
Turkish lira breaches HSBC’s stop-loss, Turkey ETF signalling outflows
CAUCASUS BLOG : What can Biden offer the Caucasus and Stans, all but forgotten about by Trump?
Armenia ‘to extend life of its 1970s Metsamor nuclear power plant after 2026’
OUTLOOK 2021 Armenia
COMMENT: Record high debt levels will slow post-coronavirus recovery, threaten some countries' financial stability, says IIF
OUTLOOK 2021 Georgia
Iran’s Khamenei menaces private citizen Trump with image of aircraft shadowing blond golfer
Iran’s technology minister indicted for failing to properly implement internet censorship
No US move to rejoin Iran nuclear deal imminent, say Biden national security nominees
TEHRAN BLOG: Will Biden bet on a quick return to the Iran nuclear deal?
Central Asia vaccination plans underwhelm, but governments look unruffled
Fears of authoritarianism as Kyrgyz populist wins landslide and backing for ‘Khanstitution’
Mongolia's PM quits amid protests over treatment of mother with coronavirus and newborn baby
Mongolia's winter dzud set to be one of most extreme on record says Red Cross
Mongolian coal exports to China paralysed as Beijing demands virus testing of truck drivers
Mongolia fears economic damage as country faces up to its first local transmissions of coronavirus
OUTLOOK 2021 Tajikistan
OUTLOOK 2021 Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan: How the Grinch stole New Year
COMMENT: Uzbekistan is being transformed, but where are the democratic reforms?
Download the pdf version
More...
Coal power plants in the Western Balkans have made virtually no progress in cleaning up their emissions, with levels of sulphur dioxide (SO2) emitted by power plants in the region exceeding pollution limits by almost six times, according to a new report from Bankwatch.
All six Western Balkan countries are aspiring EU members – four already have candidate status – and under the Energy Community Treaty they are required to apply EU norms on pollution control. Albania generates almost all of its electricity from hydropower, but the report from NGO Bankwatch says air pollution in the remaining five countries remains “stubbornly high”.
While countries in the EU have been reassessing their use of coal in light of the climate crisis, in the Western Balkans not only does coal power make up a substantial share of electricity generation, but there are plans to build new or expand existing coal power plants in several countries.
There have been some moves away from coal recently, such as Montenegro’s decision not to expand the Pljevlja power station and the cancellation of ContourGlobal’s planned power plant in Kosovo, and some investments into wind and solar power, but by and large most countries in the region remain dependent on coal.
The “Comply or Close” report looks at emissions of SO2, dust and nitrous oxides (NOx) from coal power plants in the region included in the countries’ National Emissions Reduction Plans (NERPs) – Montenegro does not have a NERP as it has only one large combustion plant – finding an overall increase despite a modest lowering of dust emissions.
The report’s authors call on governments in the Western Balkan countries to reconsider their relationship with coal and either clean up or shut down heavily polluting power stations.
“Overall, governments can no longer place their bets on coal … decision-makers across the region need to start shutting down coal-fired power plants and shifting to sustainable forms of renewable energy. There is no way around it,” said Ioana Ciuta, energy co-ordinator with Bankwatch and co-author of the report.
The biggest problem is SO2 emissions, with the worst offenders in absolute terms being power plants in Serbia and Bosnia & Herzegovina. Between Bankwatch’s first report on the issue for 2018 and the latest covering 2019, SO2 emissions from coal plants covered by NERPs increased from 603,988 to 617,281 tonnes. North Macedonia’s Bitola B3 is the region’s worst offender in terms of breaching its individual ceiling.
Bosnia’s Ugljevik power plant is the biggest emitter of SO2 in the region, followed by the Kostolac B power plant in Serbia. Both plants have fitted SO2 reduction equipment, but Ugljevik’s is not yet functional and despite the investment Kostolac B still breaches the national ceiling by 1.5 times.
The report also points to the doubling of SO2 emissions from North Macedonia’s coal power plants in the last year, from 53,855 tonnes in 2018 to 108,032 tonnes in 2019, for unclear reasons.
Dust emissions dropped slightly in 2019 but were still nearly 1.6 times the combined threshold. The Kosova B power plant in Kosovo remained the region’s top dust polluter, emitting 5.4 times as much dust as its emissions ceiling.
Power producers did better with NOx emissions, which were below the 2019 ceilings set in the NERPs for the region as a whole. At the country level, Serbia and North Macedonia remained within their NOx ceilings, while Bosnia and Kosovo breached theirs.
Emissions from coal-fired power plants in the Western Balkans have been shown to be harmful not only to the region’s population but also to nearby EU countries. A 2019 report from HEAL, CAN Europe, Sandbag, CEE Bankwatch Network and Europe Beyond Coal estimated that coal power plants across the region are responsible for around 3,900 premature deaths annually, spread between the region and nearby EU countries.
“Our alarming findings are a testament to governments’ foot-dragging, that is already taking a toll on human life. Thousands of people across the region and in neighbouring EU countries are dying prematurely from the pollution from these coal power plants. This is unacceptable,” said Bankwatch’s Balkan air pollution campaign co-ordinator, Davor Pehchevski.
“The enormous breaches and lack of improvement on SO2 and dust show a worrying neglect of pollution control measures by decision-makers,” said the report.
“Moreover, the fact that the two largest desulphurisation investments have not yet resulted in significant emissions cuts shows the need to consider closing more coal plants, sooner than planned.
“Any government that insists on keeping these dirty power plants going must step up investments in pollution control equipment that can comply with the LCP BREF, the EU’s newest industrial pollution standards. Until then, the plants’ operating hours need to be trimmed to meet the pollution limits in the Large Combustion Plants Directive that the countries have committed to as part of the Energy Community Treaty,” said Pippa Gallop, Southeast Europe energy advisor with Bankwatch and a co-author of the report.
Looking at ways to improve the situation, the report recommends that the European Commission and EU member states support the strengthening of the Energy Community Treaty’s dispute settlement mechanism.
“The EU and Energy Community also need to develop mechanisms, such as a tax on CO2, or a carbon border tax, to ensure that heavy polluters cannot so easily use their lack of investments in pollution control as a market advantage in exporting electricity to the EU,” the report adds.
At present, the Community Treaty secretariat can open cases against countries and exclude them from decision-making for some time if the Ministerial Council agrees that they are non-compliant, explained Gallop to bne IntelliNews. “In serious and persistent cases the international financial institutions can be asked to stop financing energy projects in the countries for a certain period. But no fines can be issued under the Energy Community Treaty, unlike in the EU, and this dramatically weakens its effectiveness. So when we say we want to see enforcement strengthened, we want to see actual penalties that would be proportional and dissuasive.”
Register here to continue reading this article and 5 more for free or purchase 12 months full website access including the bne Magazine for just $250/year.
Register to read the bne monthly magazine for free:
Already registered
Password could contain only a-z0-9\+*?[^]$(){}=!<>|:-_ characters and have 8-20 symbols length.
Please complete your registration by confirming your email address.
A confirmation email has been sent to the email address you provided.
Forgotten password?
Email field can't be empty.
No user with this email address.
Access recovery request has expired, or you are using the wrong recovery token. Please, try again.
Access recover request has expired. Please, try again.
To continue viewing our content you need to complete the registration process.
Please look for an email that was sent to with the subject line "Confirmation bne IntelliNews access". This email will have instructions on how to complete registration process. Please check in your "Junk" folder in case this communication was misdirected in your email system.
If you have any questions please contact us at sales@intellinews.com
Sorry, but you have used all your free articles fro this month for bne IntelliNews. Subscribe to continue reading for only $119 per year.
Your subscription includes:
For the meantime we are also offering a free subscription to bne's digital weekly newspaper to subscribers to the online package.
Click here for more subscription options, including to the print version of our flagship monthly magazine:
More subscription options
Take a trial to our premium daily news service aimed at professional investors that covers the 30 countries of emerging Europe:
Get IntelliNews PRO
For any other enquiries about our products or corporate discounts please contact us at sales@intellinews.com
If you no longer wish to receive our emails, unsubscribe here.
Magazine annual electronic subscription
Magazine annual print subscription
Website & Archive annual subscription
Combined package: web access & magazine print annual subscription