BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 23
By Tamilla Mammadova – Trend:
The Energy Community Secretariat welcomes adoption of key energy efficiency legal acts by the Parliament of Georgia, Trend reports via the European Union (EU).
As reported, the two laws - the Law on Energy Efficiency and the Law on Energy Performance of Buildings - transpose the EU Directives in this field.
The laws were developed under the coordination of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia in close cooperation with the Secretariat, and with technical assistance provided by the EU supported project EU4Energy for the Buildings Law and by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for the Energy Efficiency Law.
By adopting the two laws, the Government of Georgia paves the way for significant investments in public building renovation programs in the amount of 80 million euros from EBRD and the German Bank KfW, as well as 26 million euros in investment grants and 8.5 million euros in technical assistance from the EU.
The reforms are also financially supported with a 150 million euros policy-based loan tranche from KfW and the French Agency for Development AFD.
"The new framework will not only make Georgia's building industry more competitive, but also its households better supplied with energy services and its building stock better insulated. It will boost the usage of greener energy sources for heating, cooling and lighting," said Head of Energy Efficiency Unit at the Secretariat Violeta Kogalniceanu.
As he noted, the adoption of the two energy efficiency laws is all the more praiseworthy given that Georgia has managed to stay on course with market-oriented and sustainable energy reforms despite the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.
---
Follow the author on Twitter: @Mila61979356