BGEN-2015-10

BALKAN
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OCTOBER 2015

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Balkan Green Energy News October 201503
MobiSun – pro Energy:
The mobile robotic
solar electric generator
What is MobiSun – pro Energy?
MobiSun – pro Energy is a mobile two-axis robotic solar electric generator designed by the Robotics Laboratory of
the Mihailo Pupin Institute, based in Belgrade to help family farms in efficiency and bring cleaner agriculture. The
device rotates three light-sensitive photovoltaic panels, which are mounted on a standard passenger car trailer. A
system that monitors daily solar motion enables maximum utilization of available light, which is converted into
electrical energy.
Single-phase electric power of 220 V and 50 Hz can be used directly from the inverter or can be stored in the
package of high-quality batteries. This way the device works longer, even at night. The device has an additional
option of remote control by smart devices: monitoring of voltage at the batteries, monitoring of power produced and
of operating time. The user is not required to be physically present to put it into operation or control it. The device
can have remote electronic anti-theft protection, distraction or damage installed. Mobile solar generator can also
be operated without a trailer as a supporting platform, by simply placing the auxiliary stabilizers on the ground. In
transport position, the generator is assembled on the trailer and covered with fabric to protect it from dust. In times
of day or year when there is not enough sunlight, the device can be connected the household power grid or charged
from gasoline and diesel engines.
The solar generator can produce electricity for 30 years or even longer without any special maintenance.
PROJECTS
Testing MobiSun solar electric generator in a cabbage field
near the city of Pancevo, Serbia

Properties and advantages
Clean. No exhaust gases or carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. There is no engine oil, leakage, problems
with cold burning etc.
Noiseless. In the vicinity of the workplace it doesn’t make noise, so it is suitable for use in residential areas, but it
even doesn’t disturb wildlife.
Reliable. The system can be connected to the power grid or to traditional diesel and gasoline generators in the days
when it is cloudy and when the intensity of sunlight is insufficient to recharge.
Affordable. While the price is higher than for competing motor units on fossil fuels, this device saves funds in the
long-term. These devices last longer, require no maintenance operations and are not dependent on an increase in
fuel prices.
Durable. With photovoltaic panels and a mechanical construction designed to withstand atmospheric impacts and
heavy winds of up to 100 kilometres per hour, with an industrial quality battery for solar applications, power inverters
resistant to rough terrain, this device can be transported to remote places and can serve for decades.
Safe. MobiSun does not have negative impacts on other devices. It provides a stable voltage and does not cause
electromagnetic interference. It is safe for users because it is designed by internationally valid standards of protection
against electric shock.
Mobile. The device is powered and portable so that it is set to a standard caravan but it can function without it
placed on four feet. The unit can be switched from transmission regime to operating mode in 15 minutes without
special training for the operator.
Remote command. Mobile robotic solar generator can be switched on and off using the advantages of remote
control from a mobile phone or tablet. The user can monitor battery voltage, battery capacity, uptime, maximum
generated current and power as well as the daily amount of energy produced. Also, it is possible to remotely monitor
weather parameters.
Efficient. It is equipped with a controller that provides, in automatic mode, maximum use of the sun’s light energy
based on the embedded mobile system for monitoring the position of the sun. For its domestic geographical area the
system ensures up to 40% higher energy yield compared with stationary solar generators. Battery storage capacity
is dimensioned to allow for exploitation of other devices.
Application of MobiSun for irrigation

Applications
MobiSun is the basic and additional off-grid source of energy supply for individual users, small and medium-sized
electricity consumers. Universal in purposes, it can be used in the household, in agriculture (irrigation gardens,
fields, greenhouses, air-conditioning greenhouses, hygienic and temperature maintenance of agricultural products,
fish pond maintenance, mountain cattle farming), tourism (electrification of hunting grounds and hunting lodges,
ethnographic villages, restaurants), transport (signs, road maintenance), for the purpose of equipping the army
and police or on a camping trip. Adjustable solar generator is designed to be autonomous, not connected to the
electricity network, and it does not require any additional construction or infrastructure. The device is resistant to
rain, snow, hail, wind, high and low temperature. The environmentally friendly device is especially suitable for organic
food production. It is intended for crop irrigation in agriculture, for family farms of up to 10 hectares.
About the Institute
Mihajlo Pupin Institute (IMP) is a leading Serbian research and development institution in information and
communication technologies, the largest and longest-established in the whole of Southeastern Europe. It was
founded by the Yugoslav government in 1946 under the name of Central Radio Institute. In 1968 the institute
switched from budget- to self-financing. Today it is a state-owned and market-oriented company. Institute
Mihailo Pupin has founded several companies for various programs in ICT. Leading world companies such as
Raytheon, BASF, NCR and Philips benefited from IMP’s solutions and services. IMP won over thirty FP6, FP7
and SNSF research projects.
IMP Robotics Laboratory was founded 48 years ago and it offers broad knowledge and experience in robotics,
automation and control engineering. Special competency is focused on service robotics, intelligent control,
cognitive robotic systems and multi-agent cooperative robotics. The Robotics Laboratory staff of a permanent
core of 11 member and five adjunct researchers has expertise in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering
and electronics, control and automation, computer science and artificial intelligence.
Contact
Mihailo Pupin Institute – IMP Robotics Laboratory
Professor, Aleksandar Rodić, PhD
15 Volgina Street, Belgrade
Tel: +381 11 6774 236, 6776 174
Web: www.pupin.rs
E-mail: aleksandar.rodic@pupin.rs

SERBIA
ABB on tour with electric car
presentations
August 27
Regional Chamber of Commerce in Kruševac, a city
in central Serbia, organized a presentation of projects,
experiences and equipment in the field of fast
charging stations for electric vehicles. The municipal
authority invited representatives of automation and
power technologies company ABB, headquartered
in Switzerland, to show possibilities of electric car
transportation as an environmentally friendly and
efficient solution, local television station RTK said.
ABB’s experiences showed this technology produces
noexhaustgasornoiseandbringscheapmaintenance,
new businesses and services, said Dragana Milićević,
mayor’s assistant responsible for ecology, sustainable
development and energy.
The presentation was held by Predrag Vučenić,
sales engineer from ABB’s Belgrade office. Similar
events were organized in Novi Sad and Bor in order
to promote environmentally friendly technologies in
automotive industry.
No environmental impact expected
from SHPP project
September 2
There is no need for an environmental impact
assesment study for small hydropower plant (SHPP)
project Stenjevac, local authority of Despotovac
said on the municipal website. The department for
construction and environmental protection declared
that taking planned protection measures and technical
norms into account, there is no expectation of any
significant negative influence.
The project for a 700 kW facility on Resava river in
eastern SerbiaisbeingdevelopedbyKajkutEnergyd.o.o.
Yugoslav energy projects need dust
wiped off
September 2
“Lack of good energy policy leaves us under threat
of poverty and unemployement, and health risks,”
said Aleksandra Tomić, chairwoman of the Serbian
Parliamentary Energy Policy Forum, opening the
body’s third meeting in the form of a public debate
on the Proposal of Energy Development Strategy until
2025 with projections until 2030. National Assembly
House hosted the event.
Mirjana Filipović, state secretary at the Ministry of
Mining and Energy, said the draft strategy represents
“a wish list” and that an implementation plan will be
the next important document to be adopted.
Janez Kopač, head of Energy Community Secretariat,
based in Vienna, stressed the way forward is
accepting regional projects and utilizing domestic
potentials, as there are not going to be any projects
such as South Stream. He said Yugoslavia had an
exceptional energy concept and that “dust should
be wiped off those projects.” Kopač underscored the
security of supply has emerged as the most popular
issue from the trinity it makes with competitiveness
and sustainability, former major focal points for policy
in the European Union.
Licht: Serbia still has no wind power
plants, even though “it cannot afford not to
have them.”
Branko Kovačević, head of the Supervisory Board
of the Electric Power Company of Serbia, told
participants of the debate that the strategy needs to
include global changes in the energy sector, namely
decarbonization. This means lignite-fuelled power
plants, source of majority of electricity in Serbia, will
be shutting down, at an unknown scale or speed, he
said. Kovačević, also the dean of Faculty of Electrical
Engineering in Belgrade, added energy efficiency is
an industry in the making, and that a country should
decide if it wants to buy technology or participate in
its development.
Closing the initial debate, Sonja Licht, president of
Belgrade Fund for Political Excellence, said that five
years into debates she participates in Serbia still has
no wind power plants, even though “it cannot afford
not to have them.”
At a round table for renewables and energy efficiency,
Miloš Banjac, assistant minister of energy, said
Serbia cannot give up on lignite but that it can use
it more efficiently and with cleaner technology. He
stressed the national potential of green energy is
50% of its consumption. Gaetano Massara, regional

chief executive for General Electric, insisted that
the government should adopt power purchase
agreements for the renewable energy sector, as there
is high risk that investors could leave the market.
The state’s planned incentives are prudent and it
wouldn’t be a good move to lower tariffs before the
construction of wind farms with an overall capacity
of 500 MW, set by obligatory quota for the share of
power from renewable sources, he underscored.
EU helps preparations for emissions
trading system
September 3
Project ‘Creation of a Monitoring, Reporting and
Verifying System for Successful Implementation
of EU Emissions Trading System’ was successfully
implemented, said Oskar Benedikt, deputy head
of the European Union Delegation to Serbia. At a
presentation in Belgrade, he stressed that the effects
of climate change are already felt, such as increased
temperature with „partial consequence” being
greater influx of refugees. The project is aimed at
harmonisation of Serbian legislation with the EU and
continuous monitoring of greenhouse gas emissions
stemming from industrial and power plants.
Ambassador of France to Serbia Christine Moro said
that fighting climate change was at the same time „an
opportunity and a source of innovation and increased
competitiveness.”
The two-year endeavour was funded by the EU with
EUR 1 million and implemented in cooperation with
French, German and Austrian government institutions
as well as through the support from EU Delegation
to Serbia. Benedikt also said that every country,
including Serbia, would require a lot of money to adapt
to climate change and added that EU was willing to
support Serbia in that regard.
Investment in decreasing greenhouse gases emission
is one of possible contributions in reviving Serbian
industry and ensuring its competitiveness in the
long run, said Serbian minister of agriculture and
environmental protection Snežana Bogosavljević
Bošković. She added Serbia was required to
implement the component dealing with monitoring,
reporting and verifying in the first phase, whereas
the beginning of emission trading system depends
on the outcome of EU accession negotiations with
European Commission. The minister pointed out that
128 industrial and power plants would be responsible
for implementation of monitoring, reporting and
verifying greenhouse gases emission during the
implementation of the project.
Bogosavljević Bošković said there are 128 industrial
and energy facilities which will need to report on their
emissions. The system will be established in 2017,
she added.
Paperwork sought for extention of
planned solar park
September 7
Serbian state-owned energy utility EPS has invited bids
for the preparation of the investment and technical
paperwork to obtain the necessary permits for the
construction of a solar park near the central town of
Kostolac, SeeNews reported.
Drafting of the paperwork and subsequent permitting
should create all the necessary conditions to raise the
installed capacity of the Kostolac Petka solar park
to 9.9 MW from the currently planned 5 MW, data
from the company’s website indicated. The bidding
deadline is September 30, the document published
on August 31 said.
In December, local media reported that EPS was in
talks with German development bank KfW on wind
and solar power plant projects in the Kostolac area.
Total net output capacity of EPS’s power generation
facilities at the end of 2014 were 7.12 GW. The group’s
electricity output fell 14.6% to 31.96 TWh last year.
Households consume 100% more
energy than is optimal
September 13
Serbia is coming closer to another heating season,
and its energy efficiency level is low. Standard of living
is much lower than in the European Union, and citizens
spend two times more energy than the population in
the bloc’s developed countries, state-owned Tanjug
news agency said. For instance, the report adds,
yearly power consumption per housing unit is close to
the top of the list in Europe with 200 kWh, while the EU
average is 140 kWh.
Uninsulatedbuildings,seeningreatnumbersinSerbia’s
south, are especially inefficient, but industry and other
businesses also consume too much energy, experts
say. The state is obliged to cut final consumption by
9% by 2018 compared to levels from ten years before,
when ten million tons of oil equivalent was spent.
Assistant energy minister Miloš Banjac, responsible
for renewables and energy efficiency, said certification
of electric devices will be introduced. He claims there
is no need for big projects, and that energy efficiency

is increased through state funding. This year’s
budget is RSD 180 million (EUR 1.5 million), and 11
projects for public buildings that are being completed
account for half, Banjac said. The other 750,000 will
be allocated after a public call set for late September,
he stressed and added the procedure will be based
on energy passports for buildings and completed by
the year’s end. The assistant minister announced a
donation of EUR 439,500 to the fund, for co-financing
next year’s projects with 50% in collaboration with the
government and local authorities.
Local self-government in capital Belgrade
estimates the city, which consumes half
of the country’s heating, needs up to seven
years to introduce tariffs proportional to
thermal energy use.
A network of energy managers is to be established,
with the aim to identify and implement energy
efficiency measures for municipal governments,
public enterprises and other institutions, the article
adds. Recently a Central Registry of Energy Passports
has been established for buildings, and a national
typology for public objects is underway to help define
ways for savings. Local self-government in capital
Belgrade estimates the city, which consumes half
of the country’s heating, needs up to seven years to
introduce tariffs proportional to thermal energy use,
Tanjug’s report said. This is because 60% of buildings
have insufficient insulation, so two fifths of the
population would have to pay significantly more than
now for district heating.
Siemens: Subotica seen as hub for wind
turbines
September 14
Udo Eichlinger, new chief executive officer of Siemens
d. o. o. in Serbia, announced the German conglomerate
will shift its capacities from other countries to the
Subotica Large Drives Factory. The facility is the fifth
biggest in Siemens Large Drives segment, he added.
There may be good news at the beginning of 2016, as
the management is planning to focus on the Balkan
country, Eichlinger told Beta news agency at the
company’s event in Opatija in neighbouring Croatia.
By the end of September, Siemens will have 1,500
employees in Serbia, he said. The company is
dedicated to growing its presence in the Balkan
country and wants its employees to have more work
and better salaries, Eichlinger added.
Returns from investment in energy
efficiency can be up to 20% a year, according
to experiences from the German company’s
programme.
Returns from investment in energy efficiency can
be up to 20% a year, according to experiences from
the German company’s programme. A system of
incentives should be established, for example to
deduct those investmens from taxes, Eichlinger
claims, stressing that Siemens has trained many
consultants to promote benefits from measures
towards efficiency. Serbia could save 5% to 10% of
overall energy consumption with better regulation,
the company said, citing its research results. Current
heat demand in the country’s industry could be cut
by over 20%, while replacing obsolete electric motors
has the potential of saving 188 GWh of power a year,
according to Siemens.
Domestic companies get quarter of
smart meters job
September 15
Electric Power Company of Serbia (EPS) is introducing
the most advanced smart metering system in the
world, chief executive officer Aleksandar Obradović
(pictured first from right) said in an interview to N1
television channel. In a procurement financed by the
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
and the European Investment Bank, EUR 31.9
million was saved, he added. The allegations of Anti-
Corruption Council of Serbia from April that domestic

companies were blocked in the tender aren’t true,
Obradović stressed, as there are five of them in the
eight-member consortium that was selected for the
job.
The complex integrated system will cut losses in
transmission and enable the state-owned company to
switch power on and off and read consumption data
by remote control, head of information technologies
department in EPS Velimir Šoškić said. Smart meters
will be installed at households for free, he underscored.
Domestic companies will be able to participate in the
EUR26.6milliondealwith25.6%worthofworks,Šoškić
said. The project will last for two years, and in the first
year energy and communications infrastructure will
be mounted. Meters are to be installed at substations,
after which industrial and commercial consumers
get their devices. In the second year households in
five selected regions will get power meters, Serbian
utility’s official said.
The complex integrated system will cut
losses in transmission and enable the state-
owned company to switch power on and
off and read consumption data by remote
control, head of IT department in EPS Velimir
Šoškić said.
The first contract in the ‘EPS Metering’ project was
signed on September 10 with a consortium headed
by French companies Atos WorldGrid SAS and
Sagemcom Energy & Telecom, EPS said. In total,
208,962 metering units will be integrated in an MDM/
AMI system in the first phase, the press release
adds. There will be 40,966 devices in 10(20)/0.4 kV
substations, 4,343 meters at mid-voltage customers,
51,098 at commercial and industrial consumers and
112,555 at households. The first delivery is planned for
November 5 this year, and the last one for September
7, 2017.
Green power projects to add expenses
for households
September 15
If electricity generated by wind and solar facilities
was cheaper than from thermal power plants, Electric
Power Company of Serbia (EPS) would prioritize
renewables, said Aleksandar Obradović, head of
the government-controlled utility. In an interview
for regional news channel N1, he said EPS however
does plan significant investments in aeolic and
photovoltaic energy projects in the next five years,
he added. The technology is indeed cleaner, but also
more expensive, and that will have impact on bills for
citizens, Obradović said and added this is why thermal
power plants mustn’t be neglected. In his words, EPS
constantly invests in environmental protection in
those facilities. The new block in thermal power plant
Kostolac, financed by a loan from China, will be the
most advanced and in full compliance with European
Union’s regulation.
Obradović: EPS is preparing for the open
market and needs to fight for customers, so
there will be funds allocated for marketing,
for „a modest, decent communication with
buyers.“
The head of EPS said there will be no additional price
hike this year. The company is preparing for the open
market and needs to fight for customers, so there will
be funds allocated for marketing, for „a modest, decent
communication with buyers,“ Obradović underscored.
EPS plans to fire another 50 executives by the end of
the year, after being reorganized from a system of 14
to just three enterprises, he said. The goal is to save
EUR 36 million a year, and 40 executive positions have
already been abolished, while now an estimate will be
given for the excess number of employees, certainly in
thousands, Obradović stated.
Baden–Württemberg assisting in
energy transition
September 16
Serbia has significant potential of renewable energy,
estimated at 5 million tonnes of oil equivalent,
where biomass accounts for 3 million tonnes, said
Aleksandar Vesić, assistant minister for agriculture
and environmental protection, at an event in the
parliament. National Assembly hosted the fourth
meeting of the Serbian Parliamentary Energy Policy

Forum dedicated to the utilization of biomass for
energy purposes and experiences of German state of
Baden–Württemberg and Serbia.
Vesić said the government intends to support
company investment and public–private parthership
in the sector, having in mind the potential earnings
from the use of agricultural and forest waste. He
added a guide in English and Serbian was printed for
investors in biomass, thanks to collaboration with
partners from Germany.
Representatives of Baden–Württemberg presented
the official strategy for the transition towards greater
use of energy from renewable sources. They said
that not long ago nuclear energy accounted for 50%
of power in the German state, while now the share
is dropping, as is that of fossil fuels. Jutta Lück from
the Ministry for Environment, Climate and Energy
mentioned a project from the partnership in Stara
Pazova municipality, west from Serbian capital
Belgrade. In a facility for water purification, biogas
is taken from the sludge, bringing several thousand
euros per year. Nothing is as convincing as a good
example, she said.
Not long ago nuclear energy accounted
for 50% of power in the German state.
Serbia needs a system for tracking wood consumption
and a sustainable system, said Aleksandar Vasiljević
from the development and strategic planning
department of public forest management enterprise
Srbijašume. He added wood prices in Macedonia rose
by EUR 10 per cubic metre after a strict monitoring
regime was introduced. Serbia has generally low
quality of forests, but its poplar, grown in a big part
of the country, is best in Europe and in the rank of the
stock in Italy and Romania, he said. Unfortunately,
forest fires swallow two to three thousand hectares
a year, according to Vasiljević. He underscored the
reforested areas from this year and last already dried
out in the drought, but that older forests also die.
Other participants in the debate pointed out that
Serbia produces and exports pellet in the range of
100,000 tonnes a year, but that most of it is exported
to Italy, while this country still relies on fossil fuels.
Vojvodina co-funds lighting, solar-
powered irrigation
September 22
Provincial Secretariat for Energy and Mineral
Resources of Vojvodina closed calls for co-financing
grants in projects for utilizing solar energy in
irrigation systems and for energy efficient lighting
in municipalities and cities. Deadline for applications
was September 22.
The funds for irrigation are intended for registered
farms in Serbia’s northern province and can be used
for purchasing new solar-powered pumps and other
necessary equipment. Users will have the possibility
to use the grant to finance energy efficient gear for
utilizing solar energy for irrigation while reducing
costs, decreasing dependence on import fossil fuels
and enhancing the level of energy independence, the
documents said. Total amount of grants is RSD 12
million (EUR 99,700) and individual users will receive
up to EUR 6,650.
The lighting project has a budget of EUR 182,800,
with a maximum of EUR 41,600 per user. Municipal
authorities were able to apply for replacement of
existing systems or introduction of efficient lamps
and control equipment.
The secretariat lately implemented several schemes
for energy sustainability and efficiency measures,
including projects for farms.
Energy and ecology in one place at
Belgrade Fair
September 24
The 11th International Energy Fair (UFI) and the
12th International Fair of Environment and Natural
Resource Protection – EcoFair, to be held at the
Belgrade Fair from October 14 to October 16, 2015,
are an organic and functional part of the foundations
of Serbian and regional economy as a whole. The fact
that they are organized at the same time and at the
same place means the awareness of their coherence
and mutual conditionality in the base of the structural
concept of overall sustainable development, which
has no alternative.
Energy 2015 is the biggest yearly regional gathering
of companies, corporations, enterprises, institutions
and professionals in the sectors of electrical energy,
coal, oil and gas, renewable energy sources, energy
efficiency and mining.
The fair’s programme framework, both in the exhibition
and conference segment, includes all thematic

sublevels – from scientific research to production
and exploitation to enrichment, distribution, transport,
storage or direct utilization of natural resources.
Ecology 2015 (EcoFair) is dedicated to the system
and mechanisms of environmental protection with a
special accent on ‘green economy’, recycling industry,
renewable energy sources, and waste management,
and it is the biggest and most prestigious event of its
kind in this part of Europe.
Business and education motto of the fairs – ‘New
Energy’ – essentially reflects the unity of two sides of
seemingly contradictory but substantially inseparable
global phenomenon, having as its aim the survival of
whole human civilization and its sustainable progress.
Attendance of about 200 direct and indirect exhibitors
is expected, from which about a quarter of foreign
ones, from twenty or so countries – Serbia, Croatia,
Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Bulgaria,
Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, Italy,
Slovakia, Poland, Russia, Great Britain, Norway,
Finland... and more than 7,000 business attendants.
Extensive conference agenda includes dozens of
the most current topics from several professional
programme units, such as: Regional Cooperation in
Energy and Mutual Participation at Third Markets,
Energy Efficiency, Development of Mining, Investors
and Partners Day, Employment and Student Practice
Day, Ecological Integrations and Regional Corporation
Day, Waste Management, Waste Stock Exchange and
Trading with Waste and Secondary Raw Materials,
Waste as Energy Source, Circular Economics in the
region et cetera.
For the needs of business users, online B2B has
been activated for scheduling B2B meetings and for
online accreditations for presence and participation at
programmes in the fair.
Robotics and green power help small-
scale farming
September 24
Robotics Laboratory of the the Mihajlo Pupin Institute
and the the Institute of Agricultural Economics will
present their mobile robotic solar electric generator on
September 25 at the 9th
Forum of Organic Production
in Selenča in Serbia’s northwest. The project combines
solar energy with information and communications
technology to power and manage irrigation at small
farms. The device, mounted on a passenger car trailer
and easily movable, has just finished its field test.
Serbian agriculture suffers enormous damages from
drought, even though the land isn’t without water, says
Aleksandar Rodić, head of the Robotics Laboratory
and a university professor. “There is abundance of
solar energy and quite enough water, but only 2%
of the country is irrigated, so our valuable resource,
very fertile soil, cannot be utilized properly,” he told
Balkan Green Energy News. Serbia was impoverished
by sanctions and wars and it keeps lingers in latent
passiveness, the project’s chief stressed. “I had heard
some colleagues say feeding people should be priority
and that robotics is for technologically advanced
countries. This hit me emotionally as much as it was
frustrating in a professional sense, so I thought we
should design something as robotics engineers and
address the problem.”
Theteamofscientistsgottheideatousetherenewable
energy source to power water pumps and get the
water to the surface. The mobile solar generator,
named MobiSun, is run by intelligent management
maintaining battery level. It can be programmed to
operate independently for months if needed, and
advanced options include theft protection and remote
control by smartphone or another similar device.
The concept, being analyzed in collaboration with the
Ministry of Agriculture and Environmental Protection,
is to launch a product affordable for owners of small
and mid-sized farms, Rodić said. The Institute of
Agricultural Economics, main partner in the project,
provided consultancy services. The basic model
of MobiSun is operated manually, while advanced
versions may cost about 30% more, according to
Rodić, who expressed ambition to enter the European
and world markets. “The system is very competitive
in comparison to those that run on fossil fuels,
even though it is more expensive at the start. The
investment pays out in three to four years if we deduct
the costs for diesel or petrol. The calculation was
made for using the generator five months a year for
irrigation,” he added.
The MobiSun prototype has a capacity of 3 kW,
adequate for pumps used by target consumers.
The project has been tested in the field for the last
two weeks in four locations near Belgrade, including
greenhouses, and the device was engaged to
maximum load in corn and cabbage farms.
The mobile robotic solar generator is perfect for
organic farming, as there is no possibility of leakage
or any other pollution, including noise, the project’s
authors say. The prototype costs about EUR 7,000
and, according to Jonel Subić, head of Institute of
Agricultural Economics, industrial manufacturing may
lower the price by 10%.

KOSOVO
Energy efficiency fund should be top
priority
September 19
Institute for Development Policy (Indep) said it
organised the round table ‘Funding Energy Efficiency
in Kosovo – Benefits and Barriers’ in collaboration with
the Kosovo Civil Society Consortium for Sustainable
Development (Kosid). A policy paper that was
presented highlights the current state of affairs of the
energy sector and positions energy efficiency as a top
priority. The Rockefeller Brothers Fund has financed
the round table.
In his opening speech, Blerand Stavileci, minister of
economic development, said the government has two
primary objectives with regard to the energy sector: a
sustainable supply of energy and affordable energy
prices for all consumers. A core element of the above,
he pointed out, is the implementation of energy
efficiency measures. The minister also mentioned
two specific projects – financed by World Bank and
German KfW Development Bank – that have sought
to improve the energy efficiency of public buildings.
Subsequently, he pointed out that an energy efficiency
fund would be a more suitable alternative to cover the
residential, commercial and private sectors.
Visar Azemi, Kosid’s coordinator, said the notion
of such a fund has existed for quite some time but
that it did not have sufficient institutional backing. He
further expressed that the benefits from investments
in energy efficiency measures are manifold, ranging
from sustainable economic development and job
creation to environmental protection and climate
mitigation. Azemi highlighted the establishment of
an energy efficiency fund must be a priority of the
government and the energy sector.
During the presentation of Indep’s paper, Gent
Ahmetaj, one of the authors, highlighted it contains
recommendations on how to operationalize an energy
efficiency fund in Kosovo’s context. Among other
things, Indep recommends for the fund to be revolving.
The creation of the fund would precipitate two
immediate mechanisms: to deliver energy efficiency
services and to monitor and evaluate the savings.
With 67% of households with no insulated roofs,
52% with no double-glazed windows, and 69% living
in privation without insulated walls, there is a clear
exigency to capitalize on the energy efficiency gap
in Kosovo, the study shows. If the public sector with
its buildings and institutional infrastructure cannot
abide and maintain a minimum standard of energy
efficiency, it is unreasonable to expect that wider
society will promote or implement energy efficient
measures, the authors conclude. Grants are most
useful in cases where the population is struggling. Still,
it is not a sustainable model that could be maintained
indefinitely as it involves only a non-reimbursable
payment. With that in mind, spearheading energy
efficiency projects into practice can be achieved
through the combined use of preferential loans, grants,
and energy performance contracting, the paper notes.
The conclusions and recommendations
of the study titled ‘Funding Energy Efficiency
in Kosovo – Benefits and Barriers’ are based
on 75 legal, academic, and country-case
documents.
The conclusions and recommendations are based on
a literature survey of 75 legal, academic, and country-
case documents. States extensively covered are
Croatia, United Kingdom, Armenia, Bulgaria, Estonia
and Romania. Each case was structured to yield a
lesson, a good practice, or possibly a route towards
the establishment of an energy efficiency measure,
market, or project. Still, not all practical lessons
learned are applicable to the case of Kosovo.
The policy paper can be downloaded here.

MONTENEGRO
Installing of underwater cable soon to
be continued
August 27
After getting approval from Croatia to lay the
underwater power cable in its waters, there are no
other obstacles to continue the energy project to
connect Montenegro and Italy.
Dnevne novine, daily newspaper, learned the
continuation of installing the 250 kilometres of cable,
which will eventually be connected to the power
station under construction in Lastva Grbaljska,
is expected soon. According to projections of the
Montenegrin Electrical Transmission System (CGES),
which is implementing this project together with Italian
Terna SpA, the power cable from Montenegro to Italy
will be operational in early 2017, CdM portal reported.
In mid-November 2010, the contract for the project to
link Italy and Montenegro via power cable was signed.
The agreement was signed between the then minister
of economy of Montenegro Branko Vujović, president
of the Board of Directors of CGES Zoran Đukanović,
and the chief executive of Terna Flavio Cattaneo. The
project is worth around EUR 1 billion, and Montenegro
participates with EUR 100 million.
CGES to take 50% of EU funds – for
interconnection
September 7
State-controlled power transmission system operator
Crnogorski elektroprenosni sistem (CGES) will cover
the cost for a cross-border power transmission
capacity with half of the EUR 50 million in European
Union funds recently secured by the government in
Podgorica, SeeNews reported. Funds secured at the
recent Western Balkans Summit in Vienna will be
earmarked for the construction of a transmission line
connecting Montenegro with Serbia and Bosnia, a
project being implemented by the company.
The line between the three countries
will continue towards Italy via an undersea
cable.
The Montengrin section of the 400 kV transmission
line, set to connect the country’s power grid with
Serbia’s at Bajina Bašta and with Bosnia’s at Višegrad,
was intended to be financed through an increase in
electricity prices, but will now be covered by the EU
funds, news broadcaster RTCG reported, quoting
finance minister Vladimir Kavarić. Construction is
set for 2017. The line between the three countries
will continue towards Italy via an undersea cable. In
April, CGES and its Serbian and Bosnian counterparts,
Elektromreže Srbije (EMS) and NOS BiH, signed
an agreement to set up a Security Coordination
Center with a goal to develop the necessary services
prescribed by European network rules and by the
internal regulations of the European Network of
Transmission System Operators for Electricity.
Montenegro will receive EUR 45 million of EU grants
for the advancement of rail transport and electric
transmission, prime minister Milo Đukanović told the
press following the summit held on August 27. „A
year ago we came up with the idea of EU assistance
in developing the infrastructure of the Western
Balkans, and we have this year’s programme in which
Montenegro participates with 45 million of grant
funds for projects in the areas of electric transmission
and railway transport.“
Chances increase for departure of A2A
from EPCG
September 11
Government’s negotiations with representatives of
Italian company A2A regarding the partnership in
state-owned power enterprise EPCG are still ongoing,
but the agreement on continuation of cooperation is
not even in sight.
Fourth delay of the negotiation didn’t bring anything
new. Italians remained at the same position as
earlier, as well as representatives of the Government
of Montenegro, so it’s almost certain that A2A will
not prolong the partnership, it was said to Pobjeda
newspaper from multiple sources, portal CdM

reported. The deadline for agreement officially
expired at the end of July. Considering that an
agreement couldn’t be reached for the third time, final
decision was postponed for two months. Negotiations
are actively ongoing, according to a report by Dnevne
novine newspaper, but A2A company doesn’t want to
accept conditions of Montenegrin government related
to the investments in EPCG.
Government of Montenegro still claims that second
block of Pljevlja thermal power plant is the priority, that
EPCG can finance the construction on its own because
it has a significant amount of free assets, and that
it could also get a loan arrangement. However, A2A
disagrees, emphasizing that a third partner should
be found for the project. Majority owner of EPCG is
the state with 57,02% while the Italian company has
41,75%.
As the situation is now, there are three offers
towards Italians. First and least probable option
is the agreement on management and a new five
year contract. This means that the second block of
thermal power plant in Pljevlja would be built form
the resources of EPCG. Second option is for the
management contract not to be signed, so A2A would
keep its shares, but not the right to decision making.
In this case the power plant’s new block would still be
built. Third option, probably the most realistic one, is
the sale of A2A’s shares, but according to contracts,
shares would have to be offered to government of
Montenegro first.
Construction of Možur wind farm starts
September 14
After the investors began works for first wind farm
in Montenegro near Nikšić, implementation of a
similar investment at Možur near Bar, in the south
of the country, was recently launched. The Ministry
of Economy said the construction of these two
power facilities will greatly contribute to meeting the
national target of 33% share of renewable energy in
final consumption, according to Dnevne novine daily.
After several years of delay, both projects are finally
launched, portal CdM reported. A total of 30 wind
turbines, two substations and a maintenance building
will be built on Krnovo, in an investment of over EUR
120 million, while Možur project with 23 wind turbines
of smaller capacity will cost EUR 40 million.
Two projects, as explained by the Ministry of
Economy, will generate 118 MW in total. The project
on Krnovo is being implemented by Austrian company
Ivicom Consulting and French enterprise Akuo Energy.
Although the contract was signed five years ago, the
construction of the first wind farms broke through all
the planned deadlines. The problem is similar to the
multi-million dollar investment on the coast, reflected
in unresolved property-legal relations. Decisions on
expropriation of immovable property necessary for
construction of wind farms, as previously quoted in
Montenegrin media, are final and registered in the
real estate cadastre. Proceedings relate solely to the
assessment of the value of real estate in question,
rather than their intended purpose.
Dnevne novine said owners of the land are asking
that the price of land acquisition be increased from
50 euro cents to EUR 2 per square metre. Landowners
are also unsatisfied that the lease of their property
was not given under the same conditions as the state
land, for which the government has been collecting
revenue since 2010.
Government of Montenegro said it discussed about
the construction of small wind power plants on its
meeting on September 3. It adopted the assignment
agreement on the lease and construction of the Možur
power plant signed with company Enemalta from
Malta. Unlike the previous supplier, the consortium
Felsa and Čelebić, the new one met all requirements
prescribed by the tender documentation, the cabinet
said.
Production of solar panels to begin in
Nikšić
September 14
If details on the construction of a plant are agreed,
production of solar panels may start soon in Nikšić
in central Montenegro. A cooperation agreement was
signed by Veselin Grbović, the municipality head, and
Ma Yufeng, mayor of Chinese city of Baoding, news
agency MINA-Business said.
Grbović said interest was expressed for the
construction of a power plant fired by municipal solid
waste (MSW), and that possibilities of cooperation
with Chinese manufacturers of photovoltaic
equipment was discussed, portal CdM reported. “We
had fruitful discussions about the possibilities of
cooperation with Baoding, which is known for good
manufacturers of solar panels. We discussed the
possibility of constructing such a plant in Nikšić in
order for our municipality to be first in the region to
launch this business and cover the market,” he added.
Ma Yufeng said it was recommended by the Chinese
government to cooperate with Montenegro and the
Municipality of Nikšić. “The traditional friendship
between China and former Yugoslavia is the reason
for the visit of the delegation... We signed a general
agreement, and specific agreements would be made
at further meetings,” he said.

CROATIA
Job cuts policy results in number of
workers rising
August 22
Despite continued declarations from the state
government and national power utility HEP Group,
about how the company needs restructuring and
downsizing, including lowering median worker’s
age, last year’s official report showed the number of
employees rose by 129 compared to 2013, Croatian
Novi list newspaper’s portal said. Also, even though
there is a generous severance pay offered to those
who accept to retire early, the number of workers
close to retirement age has actually risen!
In 2012 and 2013 about 1,600 people left HEP under
agreement including a payout, so at the end of 2013
the number of employees was cut to 10,887. However,
last year it rose by 129 and the most enlarged category
is senior workers, the report said. Severance pay is
equivalent to 70 percent of average pay throughout
one’s career. Simultaneously, HEP Group is hiring
trainees, but also experienced workers, depending on
particular subsidiary’s needs and independently of age
and sex of the expert in question, said the company’s
statement to Novi list.
HEP explains inconsistencies with the
fact that each year some of the younger
workers enter an older category.
HEP explains inconsistencies with the fact that each
year some of the younger workers enter an older
category. The management had announced serious
restructuring last year but so far there weren’t any big
job cuts. Analyses were made and it was concluded
that this year 700 workers should leave with severance
pay, while 300 young experts need to be hired. The
newspaper said it is a well known yet unofficial fact
that HEP has about 2,000 people working for fees at
each given moment, as the group doesn’t have enough
of its own operatives and maintenance staff.
Last year’s incentives average EUR 116
per MWh
August 23
Croatian Energy Regulatory Agency (HERA) reported a
drop in energy consumption for last year, attributing it
partly to a rise in efficiency and measures for savings,
but pointing out that the major impact came from a
decrease in economic activity and in population’s
purchasing power. Overall, 16.9 TWh of electricity
was consumed, 2.6% less than in 2013, which was
in line with a five-year downward trend, according to
an analysis by the Croatian Association for Energetics
published on its portal Croenergo.eu. Tomislav
Marjanović, the association’s head, said 15,000 houses
and 344 residential buildings with 19,877 households
were refurbished from 2012 until now. In his opinion,
the government had introduced an attractive system
of incentives to lure investors in renewable energy
sources, but time has now come to develop the sector
differently, which is evident in new legislation, as goals
for green power’s share are almost met.
Renewables and cogeneration had
10% of installed capacity and 8% in total
generation volume in 2014.
In the eight-year old incentives system for generating
power from renewable sources and for cogeneration
there was 412 MW of capacity last year, out of which
wind facilities had 339 MW. Overall share of that
category in Croatia’s consumption was 5.51% last
year. The largest part in total production was held by
HEP-Proizvodnja, namely 85% in capacity and 80%
in recorded generation. Thermal power plant Plomin
has a 5% share in total capacity, but it generated 12%
of overall power, while the preferential category had
10% of installed capacity and 8% in total generation
volume. Power generation capacity in the country was
4.53 GW.
Average incentives paid to preferential producers
were HRK 0.89 per kWh, which translates to EUR 116
per MWh or almost three times more than the annual
average price on Slovenian and Hungarian power
exchanges. HERA said the justifiability of such high
prices within the system of incentives needs to be

reconsidered, as they are a burden to suppliers, who
are obliged to buy a proportionate share of power
from producers with preferential status. Solar power
plants are the most, while wind parks have the biggest
total capacity among more than 1,200 preferential
producers. Photovoltaic stations have a share in
generation of only 3.79% but they received 10% of
funds within the category. Quotas for solar power
had been met by the beginning of 2014, namely 5 W
for integrated plants, 2 MW for integrated facilities
on buildings owned by the state and municipal
authorities, and 5 MW for non-integrated systems,
the report said. The authors added there were much
fewer permits issued last year than in 2013.
Last year there was 35,279 tonnes of biodiesel
produced, 5.5% more than in 2013. All three producers
had an overall capacity of 179 tonnes a day. The share
of rapeseed as source in the volume produced was
95.2%, while the rest of the fuel was made from waste
cooking oil.
Domestic power plants generated 12.2 TWh in the
year, meeting 72% of demand. Hydropower accounted
for 8.4 TWh, which was the best result in ten years.
Two public charging stations installed
in Osijek
August 26
State-owned HEP Group introduced chargers for
electric vehicles in the city of Osijek in eastern Croatia.
The investment is worth HRK 110,000 (EUR 14,570).
ELEN brand stations installed in two locations were
the result of a cooperation agreement between the
utility and the municipal authority. Two cars can
simultaneously charge batteries at each station,
and the technology applied is AC mode 3 type 2,
which enables completion of the process in three to
four hours, HEP said. For now, usage is free with a
radio frequency identification card. The development
phase includes testing the technology and tracking
users’ habits with the aim to prepare the tariff model
and then to switch to the commercial phase. HEP
estimated there are about ten electric cars in the city.
The 22 kW station installed outside Elektroslavonija
distribution headquarters is powered by a 30 kW solar
power plant located on the roof. HEP mounted nine
such facilities on its buildings last year.
The national electricity company now has nine public
charging units in Osijek, Labin, Vukovar and Koprivnica,
in addition to its station at Zagreb headquarters with
six wallbox chargers. There are eight parking places
equipped there, for its 22 electric vehicles. HEP plans
to install 20 more public stations by the end of the
year and another 350 by 2020.
More wind power projects by Spanish
investor
August 29
Acciona SA set a goal to launch two wind parks in
Dalmatia in five years with an investment of EUR
90 million, said Aljoša Pleić, new head of Acciona
energija d. o. o., the company’s Croatian subsidiary.
In a statement to Lider magazine, he announced the
construction may start next year and said Acciona,
also a wind turbine producer, plans to expand its
business to Croatia’s neighbouring countries.
The company, headquartered in Spain, operates in
over twenty countries around the world in the fields
of infrastructure and renewable energy sources and
employs more than 35,000 people, the report said.
Acciona has been present in Croatia for longer than
a decade, where in 2013 it set its Jelinak wind power
plant in motion. The facility located near Split is worth
EUR 45 million and has a capacity of 30 MW in twenty
turbines. Until now Pleić was the country managing
director for SunStroom, also a renewable energy
company established in Spain.
Hydrology optimizes HEP’s liabilities in
first half
August 31
In a statement to the Zagreb Stock Exchange, state-
owned power utility HEP Group reported net gain of
HRK 1.35 billion (EUR 178.5 million) for the first half of
the year, 1.7% more than in the corresponding period
of 2014. The company cited continued stagnation
of economic activity and lower winter temperatures,
where the latter caused an increase in energy
consumption, in particular power, heat and gas.
Favourable hydrological situation that marked 2014
continued in the first six months of this year, enabling
hydropower plants to generate 3.6 TWh or 0.6 TWh

less than a year before, taking a share of 44.4%,
while thermal power plants cut production by 0.2
TWh, which optimized total expenses. Power imports
increased by 0.7 TWh.
Lower winter temperatures caused an
increase in energy consumption.
Gross income soared by 10% to EUR 7.14 billion
(EUR 950 million), and the rise was attributed mostly
to wholesale of gas, after HEP entered the market a
year before, according to the consolidated report.
Proceeds from electrical energy were at the same
level. Expenditures rose by 19.6% to EUR 746 million,
again mostly because of costs of gas wholesale
activity, while imports and incentives for energy
from renewable sources and for cogeneration made
electric power purchase costs jump 60.9% or EUR
38.85 million. Other expenses enlarged partly because
of bigger costs for carbon dioxide emission units. The
group’s investments were EUR 111.7 million.
In the unconsolidated results for parent company HEP
d. d., net gain was reported to be EUR 124.74 million,
down from EUR 180.2 million in the first semester
of 2014, as income dropped more than expenses.
Among other reasons, prices for commercial
customers dropped in the conditions of stronger
competition, and some clients switched to suppliers
outside of HEP Group, the report said. Investment in
preparations for future power plants, cogeneration
facilities powered by forest biomass, and information
and communications infrastructure was EUR 8.06
million. It was financed by own funds and a long-term
loan.
Free charging for electric cars in three
malls
September 1
City Center One introduced chargers for electric
vehicles in garages of its two shopping centres in
Zagreb and one in Split. Citizens can plug in for free
using radio frequency identification (RFID). The
plan is to allow access by SMS message or by an
application for mobile devices, in collaboration with
the telecommunications services provider T-HT, the
mall operator said. The process lasts up to two hours
and an identity card can be obtained at the info office,
according to information on City Center One’s website.
Lešće hydro plant got EUR 131,000 for
rehabilitation
September 4
Estimates that the state-owned power company HEP
had given before the construction of hydro power
plant Lešće weren’t accurate, said Jagoda Munić
from Green Action, portal H-alter reported. After the
company acknowledged it spent HRK 1 million (EUR
131,000) to mitigate the environmental damage
the facility caused, she stressed this is an example
of what the projects of Ombla and Kosinj may have
caused.
During the construction of the plant in central Croatia,
launched in 2010, the expenses turned out to be EUR
40 million bigger than predicted. The organization had
HEP report on the rehabilitation costs by insisting
on the Law on the Right to Access Information. The
company conceded long-term repair programme still
needs to be devised.
Green Action said the 42 MW power plant caused
intensive erosion downstream from the dam, hurt fish
stockanddestroyedlocalroads.Also,themicroclimate
has changed and the damage to biodiversity can’t
even be estimated, activists said.
Investor: New renewables legislation
game-changing
September 7
The bill on renewables adopted by the government
in Zagreb will lead to important regulatory changes,
resulting in a comprehensive reshuffle of rules in
this field, said Bojan Reščec, the country manager
for Croatia of Austrian privately-held power producer
RP Global, SeeNews reported. „I believe that the
new regulations were drafted in cooperation with
experienced professionals, who went through all the
available options and proposed the best solutions
within the new bill,” he said in an emailed response to
a SeeNews inquiry.
Draft Law on Renewable Energy Sources and
Highly Efficient Cogeneration was adopted in early
September at a government session in a bid to unify

and harmonize regulations in the sector in order to
boost the production and use of renewable energy
in the country as well as to fully align domestic rules
to EU law, among other goals. The bill provides the
regulatory framework to plan and incentivize the
development of the production of electricity produced
at plants using renewable energy sources and highly
efficient cogeneration while offering greater security
to investors in renewables, the government said.
Reščec added that having in mind the circumstances,
at the moment he does not see better solutions for the
sector than the ones contained in the bill. Among the
most significant changes he singled out two important
competitive procedures that all the potential investors
will have to go through before investing in projects for
renewable sources – to obtain land lease agreements,
either easement or building rights, and for ‘market
premium’, as well as the introduction of an eco-balance
group. However, Reščec cautioned that, although the
bill is a step in the right direction, it remains to be seen
whether it will be implemented properly as a number
of key by-laws need to be adopted in order for the new
framework to be fully effective.
Signals that the government has been
sending over the past three years were
somewhat conflicting when it came to their
vision for the future of renewables, says Bojan
Reščec from Austrian company RP Global.
Talking about Croatia as a destination for investments
in green energy, the official said that the signals that
the government in Zagreb has been sending over the
past three years were somewhat conflicting when it
came to their vision for the future of renewables. „The
adoption of the new regulations is a significant and
necessary milestone in that sense. Whether it is good
or bad, the actual implementation of the bill will show.
I believe and hope that it will prove to be good, but that
it will readily adapt to any potential external changes
in EU legislation if that becomes necessary, as
nowadays we are witnessing frequent and significant
changes in renewable energy sources’ regulations in
Europe,” Reščec said.
The situation in the wider region of Southeast Europe
is no better than in Croatia and RP Global has been
investing during the past few months in Chile, Peru and
Georgia, creating a counterbalance for its European
projects, although the company would gladly invest
more in Croatia if that turns out to be profitable, the
official said. RP Global Group hopes it will be able to
commission by November its 34.2 MW Rudine wind
park near the Adriatic town of Dubrovnik. Rudine is
the second wind project developed by RP Global in
Croatia. The 43.7 MW Danilo wind farm, near Šibenik,
was commissioned in 2014.
Electricity vouchers to be issued as of
October 1
September 14
As a permanent entitlement for vulnerable social
groups and in order to fight energy poverty, 60,000 to
70,000 poor households will receive vouchers worth
HRK 200 (EUR 26.2) monthly, starting on October 1,
Government of Croatia said on its website.
The agreement was signed by Prime Minister Zoran
Milanović, the state-owned HEP power company’s
chief executive Perica Jukić, GEN-I’s Robert Golob
of and RWE’s Ralf Blomberg, report by Hina news
agency said.
Milanović said the plan had been devised this spring
and that talks took months. The vouchers will be
funded by the solidarity charge of 0.004 euro cents
per kWh of power consumed, while households
that spend more than 3 MWh per year will pay EUR
11.8 plus tax. Power suppliers will absorb the cost,
Economy Minister Ivan Vrdoljak said. He added
suppliers are able to withstand the expenses because
of cheaper operations due to a set of measures for
development and liberalization of the power market.
Earlier, the government adopted an amendment to
social welfare legislation, authorizing social care
centers to distribute the vouchers and certify the right
to use them.
State grants incentives for efficient
devices
September 12
Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund
of Croatia said citizens and enterprises are entitled to
an incentive of up to HRK 70,000 (EUR 9,160) when
they buy electric or hybrid vehicles. The budget for
the project is EUR 982,000. Subsidies are worth up to
40% of the purchase. New hybrid plug-in car owners
get up to EUR 6,550, and for hybrid autos the incentive
is maximum EUR 3,930 as is for electric scooters,
motorbikes and quad bikes. So far EUR 4.45 million
was granted for 946 vehicles in two campaigns,
environment minister Mihael Zmajlović said.
The fund said on September 8 it secured EUR 1.05
million in incentives in the purchase of 10,000
household devices ranked A+++ by efficiency. The
public call will be published in October, the press
release said. All the funds of the previous programme
were used in just nine days, with 10,000 devices
bought, Zmajlović had said in June.

Efficiency fund covers up to 80% of
project value
September 17
Energy renewal programmes for residential buildings
and family houses included 20,000 households
and secured work for construction companies and
entrepreneurs, according to assistant environment
minister Marija Šćulac Domac, real estate portal
Domosfera reported. Croatia will soon publish its
energy strategy for a low carbon development, she
said at Croenergy 2015 – Sustainable Energy Finance
and Investment Summit. The event was held as
part of the Zagreb Business Summit – Cities and
Regions. After 2020 the country will have to meet
very demanding targets for lowering greenhouse gas
emissions and for enhancing energy efficiency and
share of renewables, Šćulac Domac said.
Sven Müller, head of the Environmental Protection and
Energy Efficiency Fund of Croatia, said the institution
granted HRK 1 billion (EUR 130.9 million) to citizens
and legal persons this year through 15,000 contracts.
The projects for energy efficiency were worth EUR
288 million in total, he added. Müller underscored
the fund grants 40% to 80% of efficiency and green
energy projects value. „This year the fund established
cooperation with almost 1,000 companies and more
than 300 municipal units, as well as over 15,000
citizens and in that sense we are very satisfied, but we
have ambitious plans for further on,“ he stated.
Energy consumption in buildings in Croatia is
inefficient, and 80% of buildings does not have
adequate insulation nor heating, said Borka Bobovec,
assistant minister for construction and spatial
planning.
Croenergy was organized by North-West Croatia
Regional Energy Agency (Regea) and gathered more
than 20 speakers. Examples of succesful investments
in sustainable energy use and its financing were
presented at interactive panels. The manifestation
was supported by the European Federation of
Agencies and Regions for Energy and Environment
– Fedarene, and attended by representatives of the
EuropeanCommissionandinstitutionalpartnersofthe
conference – the European Bank for Reconstruction
and Development, European Energy Efficiency Fund
and Zagrebačka banka.
SLOVENIA
Universal fast car charging station
launched at BTC
September 4
Energy company Petrol, in cooperation with BMW
Group Slovenija and BTC shopping mall, activated its
fast charger for electric car batteries in front of the
Crystal Palace business centre on September 3. It
is suitable for most electric vehicles available in the
market, Slovenia Times reported.
The government plans to install 26
similar stations at Slovenia’s highways.
Batteries are charged up to 80% in 20 minutes, a
release from BTC said, while usual charging lasts
up to four hours. The station, first of its kind in the
former Yugoslav republic, includes three cables with
connectors for different types of vehicles, the article
said. It supports DCA-CHAdeMO, DCC-CCS/Combo
and AC formats. The DC charger has the capacity of
50 kW, and the AC version has 43 kW. The government
plans to install 26 similar stations at Slovenia’s
highways.
Dean Herenda of the Infrastructure Ministry said that
the state aims to build the network by the end of this
year. There are 153 electric vehicles in the country,
according to a report by TV Slovenija. According to
power company Elektro Ljubljana’s data, there are
over 160 charging stations in Slovenia.

Plan for Italy - Slovenia power links on
schedule
September 7
AdriaLink’s project for two electricity interconnectors
between Italy and Slovenia is on track with
construction works scheduled to begin next year and
commissioning seen in 2017, said Enel SpA, one of
the company’s co-owners, SeeNews reported.
In 2009, local utilities operator Acegas-Aps SpA,
Enel and electricity trading and generation firm Tei
Energy SpA signed a memorandum of association for
AdriaLink with the aim to build and operate electricity
interconnection infrastructure between Italy and
Slovenia. Two underground power lines planned by
AdriaLink will connect Zaule electricity station in the
province of Trieste with the Dekani station in Slovenia,
and Redipuglia station in the province of Gorizia
with Vrtojba in Slovenia, respectively. At the time, the
investment cost of the projects was estimated at
around EUR 40 million.
Enel: The construction of Redipuglia–
Vrtojba and Dekani–Zaule lines will not
be affected the licence for Terna’s project
connecting Udine West and Redipuglia was
revoked.
The construction of Redipuglia–Vrtojba and Dekani–
Zaule lines will not be affected by the negative decision
linked to a third party’s project connecting Udine West
to Redipuglia, qualified by both countries’ regulators
as one of the works needed to ensure the maximum
efficiency of the two AdriaLink cables, an Enel Group
spokesman told SeeNews in an email. In fact, the
exemptions granted by the European Union to the
AdriaLink projects provide for a recalculation of their
capacity to take into consideration lines either under
construction or already completed, the spokesman
said.
In July, the Council of state – a legal-administrative
consultative body that ensures the legality of public
administration in Italy – revoked a license held by the
country’s environment ministry for the construction
of a cable linking Udine West and Redipuglia, which
the Italian transmission grid operator Terna SpA
had planned to build in Friuli Venezia Giulia, a region
adjacent to Slovenia. According to industry sources,
the issue could still be resolved in time for the planned
commissioning of the AdriaLink powerlines in 2017
because Terna, the owner of Udine West – Redipuglia,
is expected to appeal before Italy’s Supreme Court on
the grounds that the council of state’s rejection was
due to a mere procedural defect.
The awarded exemption will allow AdriaLink
to withhold profits generated by cross-border
transmission capacity auctions between Italy and
Slovenia in proportion to the amount of capacity
added by the new cables. The exemptions will last
10 years for the Dekani–Zaule line and 16 years for
Redipuglia–Vrtojba, the spokesperson said. The 300
MW of the new interconnectors is expected to bring
total capacity between Italy and Slovenia to more than
1 GW.
Switzerland funds buildings’ renovation
at Gorenjska
September 16
The four-year project Reeal for energy rehabilitation
of public buildings at Gorenjska region, worth EUR
5 million, is being concluded. The municipalities
completed the project with the help of a contribution
from Switzerland, RTV Slovenia’s English language
portal reported.
The Reeal project can be a role model of cooperation
with the municipalities where the investments were
completed, assuring sustainability and ecologic
and financial benefits, said Rok Šimenc, head of of
the Regional Development Agency Gorenjska. The
investments will bring savings of 300,000 per year
for heating in the municipalities concerned, while
the emission of carbon dioxide will diminish by
approximately 700 tons per year, the article said. This
project showed how to satisfy regional priorities with
European funds, Šimenc added.

BOSNIA AND
HERZEGOVINA
Mini hydro facility launched in Republic
of Srpska
August 26
Austrian power group Kelag and its Slovenian
subsidiary Interenergo officially launched their small
hydropower plant Zapeće on Ugar river, Srna news
agency reported. The investment is worth EUR 14
million, and planned annual production is 14 GWh
from an installed capacity of 4 MW.
Petar Đokić, minister for energy and mining in the
Government of the Republic of Srpska, said there
are 123 concessions granted for the construction
of energy generation facilities in the entity, most of
which hydropower plants, including three major ones.
Fourteen projects are ongoing, he said in the town of
Kneževo / Skender Vakuf. The investors have BAM 50
million (EUR 25.59 million) in two SHPPs in Srpska so
far, and a third one, Medna on the river Sana, is under
construction, Đokić added. Its installed capacity will be
5.1 MW and the project is expected to be completed in
early 2017, doubling Kelag and Interenergo’s assets in
Bosnia and Herzegovina, he underscored.
Interenergo also operates Novakovići
SHPP on Ugar river, and another five facilities
on Vrbas.
The minister stressed the importance of wind parks
too, namely the Trusina project in Nevesinje in the
country’s southeast. The installed capacity will be 49
MW and the facility is expected to be commissioned
in 2017, he said, according to the news report. There
is also the plan for the 48 MW Hrgud wind park in the
same area, Đokić added.
Representatives of Kelag and Interenergo amended
an agreement with Srpska’s government on August
25, extending the cooperation until September 2017.
Interenergo also operates Novakovići SHPP on Ugar
stream, and another five facilities on Vrbas river in the
country’s other entity, the Federation of Bosnia and
Herzegovina.
Earlier in August, the civic Coalition for Sana river
demanded from the authorities to declare the area
in Bosnia’s northwest a protected nature park and
abolish all plans and permits for hydropower plants
there, including Medna. The projects have been facing
opposition and protests for several years, including a
declaration from the Municipality of Ribnik and five
pending law suits, non-governmental organizations
say.
Call for concessions for three small
hydro facilities
August 28
Government of Zenica–Doboj Canton, located in
central Bosnia and Herzegovina, started the procedure
of selecting concessionaires for small hydropower
plants (SHPPs) on its territory for 30 years. Selected
investors will be obliged to hire local companies for
works worth at least 50% of respective projects. The
cost of tender documents for both calls is EUR 510.
Selected investors will be obliged to hire
local companies for works worth at least
50% of the projects.
The first of two refers to the design, construction and
management of the 1.56 MW Petrovići project on
StupčanicariverinOlovomunicipality,andthecantonal
authority started the process after Energonova d. o. o.
from Sarajevo expressed interest. The municipality
agreed, with the condition that the concessionaire is
obliged to pay a yearly fee of at least 10% of gross
income of the SHPP and invest a minimum of BAM
80,000 (EUR 40,920) in the infrastructure of Petrovići
village. The minimum starting fee is EUR 42,260,
payable to the cantonal treasury.

Investors interested in the project need to present
bank guarantees for at least 20% of total investment’s
worth. Deadline for sealed offers is September 27.
A call has been published on August 27 for a project of
two small hydropower plants (SHPPs) to be mounted
on the drinking water pipeline Suha – grad Zavidovići.
The station on the ninth kilometre of Gostović stream,
Prekidna komora, will have the capacity of 52 kW,
while Hlorna stanica facility of 54 kW will be nine
kilometres further.
Besides guarantees for at least 20% of total
investment’s worth, the investors are to agree to a
steady concession fee no less than 5% of overall
income, alongside a one-off payment of EUR 5,870.
The deadline for offers is September 26.
Panels bring light to villages devastated
by war
September 1
Lifewithoutelectricalenergy,refrigeratorandtelevision
is still a reality for several thousand houses, Akta.ba
reported. This is the experience of former refugees
from the village of Očijevo near Martin Brod in Bosnia
and Herzegovina’s west. After the war ended and they
came back home, families lived without power for 14
years!
People relied on lanterns and candles
for fourteen years until the United Nations
Development Programme secured solar
panels.
The grid had been destroyed, and the electric power
company couldn’t break even in the project to install
a line and substation for just 30 households 20
kilometres away from the town of Drvar. So the
people relied on lanterns and candles, until two years
ago the United Nations Development Programme
secured solar panels to be installed through its Green
Economic Development project.
The biggest problem had been about food, villagers
say. “We had to get food just for one day. Even though
people had their own meat and dairy products, it had
to be thrown out as it couldn’t last long,” Mile Rodić
from Očijevo said. Panels bring hot water, which is
especially significant in winter, he added.
Since the off-grid renewable energy projects are still
relatively expensive, help and incentives from the state
are necessary, said Almir Selmanović from the Center
for Economic, Environmental, and Technological
Development – Ceteor d. o. o. from Sarajevo. The
company’s expert underscored several organizations
implemented pilot projects in rural areas, showing the
solutions are worthwhile.
Locals threaten to block construction of
SHPP
September 17
A group of citizens from the communities of Jeleč
and Miljevina in Foča municipality in Bosnia and
Herzegovina’s southeast demanded from the
responsible inspection body to halt construction of
small hydropower plant (SHPP) Govza 1, Nezavisne
novine’s portal said.
Safety measures were avoided and the
structures have no support in walls and piles,
which were planned in the project, villagers
said in a complaint.
Local population may organize protests and block
works because they endanger their safety, the group
said. They demanded from the authorities to make the
investor, Elektros d. o. o., and contractor, Radis d. o. o.,
respect conditions noted in permits and the project’s
provisions. The citizens noted there is everyday
use of explosives. They added they suspect safety
measures were avoided and that the structures have
no support in walls and piles, which were planned in
the project.
Locals said the pipeline isn’t being covered with
earth and that the building of the 5 MW power
plant is bigger than predicted. Local councils will
organize gatherings in order to discuss developments
concerning construction of SHPPs Govza 1 and Govza
2, and the projects’ impact on roads, environment and
Govza river. The construction started on July 30 last
year, and in the meantime the investor has breached
deadlines for the BAM 15 million (EUR 7.67 million)
worth SHPP Govza 1.

Environmental groups call for
protection of Sutjeska
September 21
At a press conference held at hotel Bosna in Banja
Luka, representatives of environmental organizations
called on the Government of the Republic of Srpska
to meaningfully protect Sutjeska National Park,
threatened by planned hydropower plants.
On September 15th
, representatives of Friends of
the Earth Europe –Pro Natura / Friends of the Earth
Switzerland, Centar za životnu sredinu / Friends of
the Earth Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Green Action
/ Friends of the Earth Croatia, called on the entity
authorities to cancel the concession permanently,
after projects were halted.
“Yesterday we delivered a citizens’ initiative to the
National Assembly. With this press conference we
want to strengthen our battle and show that we
have great support from our European partners.
We believe that the unification of our knowledge,
experience and willingness to preserve nature will
succeed in influencing public policies, individuals
and the direction in which countries like Bosnia and
Herzegovina are heading; countries rich in nature but
which are basing their development on environmental
destruction,” said Nataša Crnković from Centar za
životnu sredinu, Green Action reported on its website
Bertrand Sansonnens from Pro Natura said the
organization supports bringing clear scientific
evidence of the park’s importance, and joins the fight
for nature. Balkan rivers are unique and irreplaceable
ecosystems, under huge pressure from hydro plans
in the region, said Jagoda Munić from Green Action.
“We have seen in cases from Croatia how these
projects are often linked to corruption and unfair
resource distribution, and the impact this has on local
communities. For all of us in the Balkans, rivers are
a common good that unite us, and which we should
protect together,” she added.
ROMANIA
Electrica exiting two wind energy
projects
August 20
Citing declining profitability of renewable energy,
Romanian utility revealed a plan to terminate the
development of two wind parks, which is reflected by
financial statements by the management, Business-
Review reported.
Electrica SA was listed on markets in Bucharest and
London in July last year, and made a decision at the
time to postpone investment in green power, after a
recommendation by the privatization consortium, the
report said. The state has a share of 47.48% in the
electrical energy producer and distributor, while the
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
follows with 8.66%. The company introduced three
aeolic power projects five years ago, but gave up on
one in the meantime.
The company spent EUR 2.83 million for
the development of the two projects, with an
overall capacity of 93 MW.
According to Mediafax news agency, both remaining
endeavours are ready for construction and Electrica
is considering outsourcing them due to adverse
changes in the renewable sources regime, because
of its focus on distribution, and the limited synergy
between the two activities. Estimated investments
in the 45 MW wind farm at Frumuşiţa in Galaţi
county are RON 308.25 million (EUR 68.5 million),
while overall funds needed for the 48 MW project at
Chirnogeni in Constanţa county are about EUR 90.5
million. The company spent EUR 1.89 million and EUR
0.94 million so far, respectively. Annual investment
plan at the group level for this year is EUR 194.37
million. Electrica is counting on a turnover of EUR
1.28 billion and a net profit of EUR 104.06 million.
In 2014, Electrica recorded sales of EUR 1.14 billion
and a net profit of 90.72 million, of which EUR 65.06
million is net income, attributable to shareholders.
The utility has decided to lay off over 800 employees
from its subsidiaries, aiming to increase productivity,
according to Romania-Insider. At the end of last year,
Electrica had 11,740 employees.
Electrica covers three regions in distribution and
supply: Transilvania Nord, Transilvania Sud and
Muntenia Nord, and has a national presence in
maintenance and energy services. The company
serves 3.5 million customers.

Less than 1% of wind turbines older
than five years
August 20
On July 1, out of total national wind park capacity of
2.98 GW installed in the country, only 20 MW was
from old turbines, according to the Romanian Wind
Energy Association (RWEA) data. Average turbine
capacity is 2.5 MW and it is estimated there are almost
1,200 nationwide, ACTMedia news agency reported.
Market value of a new turbine depends on several
parameters, like the number of turbines purchased by
an investor and maintenance agreements signed with
the producer, the report said. RWEA’s representatives
say that, in principle, one can calculate a value of EUR
1 million per MW.
„In Romania there are 20 MW installed with used
turbines, those which were mounted until 2010, in the
first years of wind industry. All the other turbines are
new, with the highest technical parameters possible.
Due to the fresh fleet of turbines, the relevant industry
of Romania is among the top ones in terms of
technology. Main producers present in Romania are
Vestas, General Electric, Siemens, Gamesa, Nordex
and Enercon,“ RWEA’s representatives told the agency.
RWEA said that when low-power turbines are
dismounted, these are replaced, in most cases, with
higher power turbines.
E.ON gets EUR 2 million in damages
from government
August 24
After a legal dispute at the arbitration court in Paris
against E.ON, Romanian state lost the case because
of claims being overdue and is obliged to pay the
German energy group EUR 2 million in compensation.
The government had accused E.ON of not having
made the investments promised in the privatization
contract of the former Electrica Moldova, Romania-
Insider reported. The state then asked the company
to pay EUR 33 million, but the court in Paris ruled in
favor of the other party, Capital.ro said.
The government in Bucharest also has other legal
disputes with international companies that took
over electricity distributors. Romania also went to
court against Enel, demanding EUR 500 million in
compensation. The state claims that the Italian
energy company, which took over Electrica Muntenia
Sud, didn’t respect the privatization contract.
Biggest wind investors post EUR 450
million losses
August 25
Ten largest companies in Romania’s wind energy
sector posted cumulated losses of almost EUR 450
million last year. By comparison, they recorded total
profits of EUR 112 million in 2014, Ziarul Financiar
said.
Between 2009 and 2013, installed
capacity of wind energy power plants
increased from 14 MW to 3 GW, following
investments of about EUR 4.5 billion.
Between 2009 and 2013, installed capacity of wind
energy power plants increased from 14 MW to 3
GW, following investments of about EUR 4.5 billion,
according to a report by Romania-Insider. The
investments flourished, as the Romanian state offered
a generous support scheme for investors during this
period, which was based on green certificates paid by
consumers.
International investors such as Energias de Portugal,
Czech company ČEZ, Italian group Enel, Austrian
Verbund,haveassetsinthisfield.Thesupportscheme,
however, proved to be a burden for consumers,
especially for the industrial ones, which paid high
energy bills. The state changed the support scheme
in mid-2013, cutting the number of green certificates
offered to the renewable energy investors, forcing
them to rethink their business plans in Romania.

Subsidies hike encourages purchases
of electric cars
August 26
Buyers of electric cars will receive RON 20,000 (EUR
4,500) vouchers and buyers of hybrids will benefit
from a EUR 1,130 discount, after the Romanian
government’s emergency ordinance which applies
for both private and legal persons. Owners of electric
vehicles were entitled to a deduction of EUR 2,700
until now. Government sources told Energynomics.
ro portal that 100 vouchers for electric cars will be
available, like in the 2013 programme.
The grant for hybrids applies for vehicles with external
power supply which are certified to emit less than 50
grams of carbon dioxide per kilometre.
The Administration of the Environmental Fund (AFM)
introduced a similar programme in 2013, when 100
so-called ecotichete were allocated for purchasing
electric cars. The only applicant that has benefited
from the subsidy to buy a car of this type was the
Municipality of Moineşti in Bacău county. Last year
the subsidy programme was not implemented.
Hidroelectrica begins procedure for
exchange listing
August 26
Six months out of insolvency, largest national
power producer may be listed at the stock market,
Energynomics.ro said. Károly Borbély, Hidroelectrica’s
head of strategy and corporate affairs, said the
preparations already begun. „It will be possible six
months after we come out of insolvency, most likely in
the fall of 2016 or early 2017,“ Romanian state-owned
utility’s official underscored.
He argues that Hidroelectrica managed to decrease
the cost of energy production from RON 176 (EUR
39.8) per MWh before the insolvency to EUR 24.2
per MWh. The company had good results last year,
as profit of EUR 1.2 billion came from sales of EUR
3.2 billion euro. Lower net income is expected for
this year, the report said. Hidroelectrica will reach the
production level of 16 TWh, in comparison to 18 TWh
of power from last year, so profit will be lower, Borbély
said.
Generation of 16 TWh is expected for this
year, compared to 18 TWh from 2014
Bogdan Stănescu, the new special administrator
of Hidroelectrica, believes listing is possible in
2017, about a year after exiting insolvency status.
Hydropower plant operator may be listed on the stock
market while still insolvent until May, the company’s
trustee Remus Borza had said in June. Hidroelectrica
would list 15% of shares, he added at the time.
Power distribution system hurts
competition
September 3
According to a recent warning report from the
Competition Council (Consiliul Concurenţei) of
Romania, the fee system for the distribution of electric
power, which differs by geographical areas, negatively
affects competition depriving the consumer of
benefits, unjustified even by the security of the
national power grid. The head of the Competition
Council, Bogdan Chirițoiu told portal Balkans.com
about the measures taken to protect consumers and
ensure transparency in the electric power sector:
„This analysis offers us an image of the electric power
sector, and what we saw was the full half of the cup:
the fact that the liberalization of the electricity market
entailed a rise in competition and lower prices for
industrial consumers, at least the ones that function
under a liberalized system. Moreover, the market is
still marred by a number of problems, such as the
lack of predictability, you cannot conclude long term
contracts, which is why our main recommendation is
to improve the energy stock market, the instrument
that transacts energy, which right now does not have

enough facilities to allow for long term contracting.“
He stressed there was always room for improvement
in regulation. „We have to make sure that the fees in
the monopoly area, the conveyance and distribution
area, are as low as possible, to make sure there are
no losses, and to create predictability in prices, to
allow long term contracts, so that a large scale energy
consumer may know what will come in a few years,
not for about a year or less in the future. There may be
an even simpler solution. We could sign contracts for
a few years,“ Chirițoiu said.
Hidroelectrica sells hydro facility to an
archdiocese
September 8
Thebiggeststate-ownedpowerproducersolditssmall
hydropower plant (SHPP) Călugăriţa, located in Argeș
county in central Romania, to the Argeș archdiocese,
according to Mediafax, Business Review’s portal
reported. Hidroelectrica SA, insolvent for the second
time, took RON 1.7 million (EUR 380,000) for the one
of only two small hydro facilities it sold from the 34
that were put on sale by auction in July. Both SHPPs
were acquired for the starting price in the bid, EUR
900,000 in total, the country’s media reported in
August.
The second plant, Vlădeşti, was auctioned
to Roski Air Service for EUR 500,000.
Calugarita micro-hydropower plant on the Valea lui
Stan river in Argeș county has been acquired by the
Archdiocese of Argeș and Muscel of the Romanian
Orthodox Church for EUR 380,000, while the second
plant, Vlădeşti, located in Olăneşti river basin in
Vâlcea county, was auctioned to Roski Air Service,
for EUR 500,000, lawyer Remus Borza, the company’s
insolvency administrator, told Mediafax.
The plant bought by the archdiocese has an installed
capacity of 630 kW and produces enough energy to
supply 180 households. The second plant also has an
installed capacity of less than 1 MW. Hidroelectrica
owns 128 SHPPs with an installed capacity of up to
4 MW each. The company is insolvent for the second
time since February 2014, the first reorganizing having
taken place between June 2012 and June 2013.
Hidroelectrica recorded a record profit of EUR 163.78
million for the first half of this year, 42 percent higher
than in the same period last year, the article said.
Turnover increased by EUR 67.2 million, reaching
EUR 418.69 million. In November, the company will
be auctioning another 40 SHPPs in Valcea, Suceava,
Bacău, Neamţ, Hunedoara, Maramureş, Braşov, Arad,
Sibiu, Argeş, Buzău and Timiş. Hidroelectrica owns
128 facilities in the category, with an installed capacity
of up to 4 MW.
Headrace gallery worth EUR 150 million
launched
September 9
Hidroelectrica said it inaugurated Surduc–Nehoiașu,
its latest headrace gallery, at the Pruncea intake
point at Bâsca Mare, following a EUR 150 million
investment. The tunnel is part of the Surduc–Siriu
hydropower planning, the Romania Journal reported
on its website.
The project is the longest of its kind to be implemented
since 1984, being also the government-controlled
company’s biggest investment after 1990. It leads
watertofromtheSurducaccumulationtohydroelectric
plant Nehoiașu. It takes in various tributaries and it
will mean another 171.8 GWh of power a year, said
Remus Borza, the unsolvent company’s administrator.
Nehoiașu’s generator has installed
power of 55 MW and an estimated electricity
production capacity of 171.8 GWh.
He explained that the water goes from a reservoir of
282,000 cubic metres to a location of a future 55 MW
aggregate, scheduled to launch in 2017. Two more
generators of 21 MW each will be added subsequently,
Borza said, according to a report by Agerpres.
The tunnel has a length of 16.6 kilometres, a flow of
40 square metres per second and an inner diameter of
four meters, with a 30-35 centimetres thick concrete
lining. Construction was organized at eight points
at Bâsca Mare, Titilau, Pruncea, Trestia and Castel.
Surduc–Siriu hydropower project is carried out in the
counties of Buzău, Vrancea, Covasna, and on Buzău,
Bâsca Mare, Bâsca Mică and Zabala rivers and was
started in 1981.
The underground gallery’s last section of Trestia–
Castel is still being dug, with the aim to cover the entire
length of 16.6 kilometres through the mountain range

of Buzău. The gallery, longest one to be dug for energy
purposes at its 2,540 metres, will have the highest
waterfall level among Hidroelectrica’s investments –
490 metres. It will ensure Nehoiașu plant the highest
energy production capacity in the company’s portfolio.
The hydropower plant’s generator has installed power
of 55 MW and an estimated electricity production
capacity of 171.8 GWh during an average hydrological
year. Nehoiașu 1 has been operational since 1988 as
part of the Surduc–Siriu hydro project, having two
generators with a total installed capacity of 42 MW
and an average production of 120.6 GWh per year.
The hydropower investment in Siriu-Surduc is part
of the company’s investment plan for 2015-2020,
Hidroelectrica having a budget of over EUR 1.3
billion allocated for refurbishment, maintenance and
development works.
Monsson Group taking down its 27 MW
wind farm
September 9
Regulatory changes slash revenue potential, and
Monsson Group will take down its completed wind
farm rather than connect to the grid and lose money
for 25 years.
Renewable energy firm Monsson Group is preparing
to dismantle turbines at Târgușor in Constanța
county, Wind Power monthly published on its website.
Nine Vestas V90 turbines of 3 MW each should
be removed by end September, expects Monsson
business development manager Sebastian Enache.
The company does not yet have plans for using or
selling the turbines, so they will initially be put into
storage.
Enache: It’s one thing to lose money
you’ve already lost but another to know
you’re about to start losing money for the
next 25 years.
Project investments amounted to about EUR 1.6
million per MW for a total of over EUR 40 million, but
the project was never commissioned as the Romanian
regulatory backdrop went from bad to worse and
expected income for wind projects slumped, the
report said. During different construction stages,
the legislation changed three times, says Enache.
He notes that expected income from the project –
sum of revenues from the sale of power and green
certificates – would now stand at about EUR 45 to
EUR 55 per MWh compared to EUR 120 to EUR 140
per MWh in 2012.
Construction was completed at end-2013 but the final,
minor permit needed to operate was only received in
mid-2014 as project approval slowed amid increasing
regulatory uncertainty. To comply with Romania’s grid
code, Monsson reached a point where it had to turn on
the turbines or take them down. „The important thing
now is that we’re not commissioning the project,“ said
Enache. „It’s one thing to lose money you’ve already
lost but another to know you’re about to start losing
money for the next 25 years.“
Monsson operates approximately 100 MW of
additional wind capacity in Romania. It is also turning
to places like Turkey and South Africa, entering both
countries through its operations and maintenance
business.
Romania’s wind energy capacity jumped from 14 MW
in 2009 to 2.95 GW at end-2014, although growth
began slowing in 2013. Only about 50 MW is expected
to come online this year. Monsson developed 2.5
GW in Romanian wind projects and sold about half
of these, including the 600 MW Fântânele-Cogealac
wind farm operated by Czech utility ČEZ. The other
half, at a ready-to-build stage, is now on hold.
A major problem is that wind producers are not
guaranteed to find a buyer for their green certificates,
the article said. A green energy sourcing requirement
for energy suppliers, which can be satisfied with the
purchase of the certificates, has been set too low and
has resulted in a chronic oversupply. There is no buyer
of last resort.
Monsson could decide to redirect capital towards
other markets, the company had said in August.
Austria’s Biogest builds EUR 5.3 million
biogas plant
September 15
The Romanian unit of Austria’s Biogest, First Biogaz,

officially opened the first company-owned biogas-
fuelled plant in the country.
Electricity is fed into the grid and heat from the facility
is used at a grain dryer and a fish farm. Biogest has
invested EUR 5.3 million, said Banca Comerciala
Romania (BCR), which financed the project, SeeNews
reported. The plant, located in Ardud, a town in the
northwestern county of Satu-Mare, has an installed
capacity of 1.5 MW, the bank said in a statement.
Local company Schwab Agroprod Srl, is a partner and
shareholder. It farms at 3,000 hectares and operates
one of the largest grain dryers in Transylvania, with
a storage capacity of 35,000 tonnes and a drying
capacity of 800 tonnes of fresh mass a day, Biogest’s
press release said. The biogas plant was built using
the company’s PowerRing technology and it will
use energy crops and agricultural by-products such
as maize straw on a large scale. Research and
development activities at Biogest focus on exploring
the potential for using alternative raw materials with
the aim of reducing substrate costs and creating
symbiosis between food production and power
generation, the document said. Using perennial wild
plants as a substrate will also be tested in Ardud,
turning the site into a pilot plant for the whole region.
The business of Biogest covers design, planning,
funding, turn-key construction and operation of
plants with installed capacities ranging from 100 KW
to 3.5 MW. BCR, a unit of Austria’s Erste Bank AG, is
Romania’s largest in terms of assets.
Biogest said in late July it received its first order to
construct an agricultural biogas plant in Bjelovar–
Bilogora County in eastern Croatia. The project
includes output of 1 MW and utilization of agricultural
manure and energy crops.
Call for inputs on biogas, biomass
legislation
September 18
The Romanian Association of Biomass and Biogas
(Arbio) said it prepared a draft law for biomass and
biogas in collaboration with its member, law firm CMS
Cameron McKenna, as a result of participation in the
working group within the Ministry of Energy, Small
and Medium Enterprises and Business Environment,
coordinated by state secretary Bogdan Nicolae Badea.
Arbio’s press release adds the organization held its
first meeting with the representatives of National
Energy Regulatory Authority (ANRE) explaining them
its arguments and receiving support in drafting of the
law. Some of the association’s members have already
submitted proposals. Arbio expects input from more
of them and called for approval or to suggest changes.
After the deadline for submissions has passed, those
interested can schedule an appointment for an
internal discussion.
Together with the Romanian Association
of Pellets and Briquettes Producers, Arbio
is part of a working group for the national
strategy for the forest sector.
Arbio also called for collaboration regarding European
Union’s and national grants. While it participates
with success in different EU grants projects, it is
welcoming new ideas and proposals, being able to
be the Romanian partner in a multi-country project,
or to be one of the partners in a national one. The
association said it was very interested in research,
studies, clusters, measuring the potential of the sector
in different fields, organizing useful events et cetera.
Together with the Romanian Association of Pellets
and Briquettes Producers (APPBR), Arbio is part of a
working group for the national strategy for the forest
sector, created by secretary of state Dan Popescu.
The association said it had declared three priorities
already in the beginning, first one being to agree for
illegal wood cutting to become a separate subject and
a top priority. Arbio said it explained that biomass is
parts of the legally cut wood that the other industries
don’t use. The third point, made in the discussion
with the association of furniture producers, had been
that one of the reasons why this sector is booming
in Romania is exactly because they transformed their
wood waste into fuel for their heat installations, the
press release said.

BGEN-2015-10

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