The initiative for Coal Regions in Transition in the Western Balkans and Ukraine was launched in December 2020 to support countries and regions to move away from coal towards a carbon-neutral economy, while ensuring that this transition is just.
- Beneficiaries:
The initiative delivers support to coal regions in EU neighbouring countries, namely in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Ukraine. - European Commission and six principals:
It is managed by the European Commission, as a joint effort of six collaborating international principals: the World Bank, the Energy Community Secretariat, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the European Investment Bank (EIB), Poland’s National Fund for Environment Protection and Water Management (NFOSiGW), and the College of Europe in Natolin, working together with partners in the Western Balkans and Ukraine to deliver knowledge to coal regions and governments for planning and preparing for transition. - Role of the Energy Community Secretariat:
The Secretariat will provide input and ensure consistency of the planned activities in the coal mining regions in Western Balkans and Ukraine with national plans related to coal use and reforms of the energy system.
The establishment of the initiative aims to facilitate the development of transition strategies and projects to kick start the transition process in the coal-dependent regions. It provides an open platform allowing region-wide, multi-stakeholder dialogue and a space for sharing experiences, knowledge and best practices on transition-related issues, encouraging ties between coal regions in the Western Balkans and Ukraine and their EU counterparts through coal region-to-region exchanges. Capacity among relevant stakeholders will be built through a Coal Academy that will offer dedicated trainings on governance, community engagement, environmental reclamation, and repurposing of land and assets. The selected pilot regions will be provided with access to technical assistance in the form of expert support to develop transition roadmaps for relevant public authorities.
The initiative also aims to help coal regions access financing for transition projects or programmes, based on various sources available from the European Commission, the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the European Investment Bank.