What do the OKKO filling stations employees say about their employer?
Publication | 3 November, 2022Petrol filling stations network OKKO, controlled by the Galnaftogaz JSC, is known throughout Ukraine. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) facilitated the expansion of this network having a long history of relations with Concern
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Rebuilding cities for people in Ukraine
Publication | 19 September, 2022This briefing describes Ukrainian cities’ efforts for green development before the war and their plans for green post-war reconstruction.
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Red flags over plans to swap coal for biomass and waste incineration in Tuzla
Blog entry | 8 September, 2022The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Bosnia and Herzegovina’s energy utility Elektroprivreda BiH are signing today an agreement formalizing the Bank’s commitment to consider financial support for a particularly questionable energy project in Tuzla. But the public is barely aware of what this risky investment could bring to local communities.
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Amulsar’s costs to human rights and threats to environmental defenders
Blog entry | 4 August, 2022Armenia’s government and investors have failed to prevent human rights abuses related to the Amulsar gold mine. As we await the outcome of an EBRD investigation, environmental and human rights defenders continue to face threats. New reports show how the policies that should protect human rights and environmental defenders have failed to stop a project whose costs outweigh the benefits.
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Replacing coal with forest biomass for heating is a dangerous green mirage
Blog entry | 21 July, 2022With the energy transition well underway, and the end of the era of coal clearly on the horizon, biomass for heating is gradually becoming a favorite for governments in the Western Balkans and their financial partners. ‘Tree power’ might sound like the greenest kind of energy, but burning timber from forests to heat homes is anything but sustainable.
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The real cost of hydropower plants in Central Asia and the Caucasus
Blog entry | 12 July, 2022International financial institutions’ support for hydropower in Central Asia and Caucasus is fuel for environmental damage and human rights violations.
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Amulsar: Human Rights Violations and Environmental Negligence in the Search for Gold
Publication | 28 June, 2022This report sheds light on the human rights violations by the Armenian government and investors, including the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, in relation to the Amulsar gold mine project.
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Voices of support for Ukraine echo in Morocco: takeaways from the EBRD Annual Meeting in Marrakesh
Blog entry | 8 June, 2022The 2022 EBRD Annual Meeting was held in the city of Marrakesh, Morocco. Although taking place far away geographically, the topic of Ukraine dominated the agenda. Will the EBRD ensure its funds for the country’s reconstruction are used in the most efficient, green and inclusive way?
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Pouring millions from empty into the void
Blog entry | 30 May, 2022EBRD and EIB investments in Bulgarian hydropower have once again been hit by scandal with the recent failure of the Chaira pumped storage plant and revelations about the illegality of small hydropower plants. The planned Yadenitsa dam would be more of the same: will the EBRD and EIB be wise enough to say no?
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Sustainable heating is already reality in the EU. Now it’s the Western Balkans’ turn
Blog entry | 16 May, 2022In the Western Balkans, heating based on fossil fuels is making air pollution worse and is also the source of half of greenhouse gas emissions. Sustainable and affordable heating systems based on renewables are no fantasy. They operate successfully in other parts of Europe, and can be implemented in the Western Balkans if decision makers start acting now.
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