Director Lorkowski meets Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Mihajlovic, cooperation on energy transition tops the agenda

Director Artur Lorkowski and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Mining and Energy, Prof. Zorana Mihajlovic, agreed to enhance cooperation between Serbia and the Secretariat in order to advance the country’s energy transition in line with the European Green Deal.

Director Lorkowski said: “Recognizing the opportunities and challenges of the energy transition, we agreed to work closely together to ensure a socially acceptable energy transition in Serbia, aligned with the ambitions of the European Green Deal. I am delighted that the Deputy Prime Minister accepted my invitation to co-chair the Energy and Climate Committee of the Energy Community, which will steer the process of negotiating 2030 targets for renewables, energy efficiency and greenhouse gas reduction of the Contracting Parties of the Energy Community. I look forward to working closely with the Deputy Prime Minister, her team and other Serbian stakeholders to make the energy transition in Serbia a reality.” 

Deputy Prime Minister Mihajlovic said: "Together, we will work to make the entire region more energy secure, and to make everything we do, from regulations to projects, in line with the highest requirements of environmental protection. The Green Agenda is a new model of growth and the measures we are adopting in the field of energy efficiency and the development of renewable energy sources should contribute to improving our energy security. Nothing will be done overnight, it is important that all steps are implemented in a sustainable way, with a vision to ensure the development in the areas that are important for the future, so that we have more energy and green development."

The discussions also focus on the transposition of the clean energy for all Europeans package, adopted at the 2021 Ministerial Council in Belgrade, as well as the development of Serbia’s National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP), phasing out of coal subsides and carbon pricing as a potential source of finance for the energy transition. The Secretariat raised open issues in terms of the country’s implementation of the electricity, gas and renewables acquis.

The Director was accompanied by Deputy Director Dirk Buschle, Head of the Electricity Sector Jasmina Trhulj and Head of the Gas Sector, Predrag Grujicic.

In the afternoon, the Energy Community delegation met with representatives of the Serbian energy regulatory authority, the Energy Agency of the Republic of Serbia (AERS).