BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The Republic of Serbia has recognized alternative energy as an important segment of energy transition and contribution to the goals set by the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans, by which Serbia, together with other countries in the region, joined the goals of the European Green Agreement, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Mining and Energy, prof. Dr Zorana Mihajlović told Trend.
“Speaking specifically about renewable energy sources (RES), Serbia has passed this year and for the first time a special Law on the Use of RES, in order to accelerate investments in this sector and enable greater share of RES in the energy mix. Our goal is to get at least 40 percent of energy from renewable sources by 2040, and 50 percent by 2050, which is why the focus of new investments will be on the construction of large and medium hydropower plants and greater utilization of RES, with the construction of gas power plants that are important for the system stability. The new investment plan that the Ministry is preparing is directly related to the energy transition of Serbia, and includes projects in all areas under the responsibility of this Ministry worth about Eur 17 billion, including investments of the public and private sector. When it comes to the electrical power sector, the planned investments amount to more than Eur 7 billion, and about Eur 5 billion is the value of projects in the areas of solar and wind energy, where we expect large investments in the coming years,” noted the deputy PM.
Mihajlović went on to add that this Law creates conditions for the use of completely new technologies that are important for energy transition and decarbonization, such as green hydrogen, commercial use of which is just at the beginning, and for the development of which the EU adopted its strategy less than a year ago.
“I believe that our international partners and investors already recognize everything that Serbia has done to improve its legal framework, and that this will open new opportunities for the development of cooperation between Serbian and Azerbaijani companies, potential new investments and the implementation of joint projects,” added the Serbian deputy PM.
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