July 16, 2026 | Read more The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) failed to trigger its environmental and social safeguards as the City of Bishkek got rid of 131 trolleybuses purchased with loans from the Bank. Will any lessons be learned from this fiasco?
July 15, 2026 | Read more For coal-dependent communities in the Western Balkans, the launch of the JET Balkans project marks a welcome end to more than two years without a dedicated regional support platform. But with political commitment, funding and transparency still in short supply, local authorities and civil society are wondering whether the initiative can turn planning into meaningful implementation, or whether it will repeat the shortcomings that have slowed just transition efforts across the region.
July 14, 2026 | Read more The current situation among district heating companies in Serbia provides a timely warning for Western Balkan governments still betting on new fossil gas infrastructure. In recent years, these governments have shown renewed interest in building new gas infrastructure. Many projects have been on the table for years, but new schemes are also being actively promoted by the United States.
July 10, 2026 | Read more The Operational Programme Technologies and Applications for Competitiveness (OP TAC) is one of the Czech Republic’s flagship EU funded programmes for the 2021–2027 period.
July 9, 2026 | Read more The European Investment Bank (EIB) Group is currently reviewing its Complaints Mechanism Policy – the framework for how the EIB Group Complaints Mechanism (EIB-CM) addresses complaints from individuals and communities harmed by EIB-funded projects. This review is long overdue.
June 30, 2026 | Read more Ageing Soviet-era housing and outdated public infrastructure mean central and eastern Europe can least afford further delays.
June 29, 2026 | Read more All EU Member States were required to prepare a draft national building renovation plan and submit it to the European Commission by 31 December 2025.
June 22, 2026 | Read more In 2025, systematic law enforcement failures allowed sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions from the Western Balkans’ ageing coal power plants to exceed legal limits by 6.6 times, according to the eighth edition of Bankwatch’s Comply or Close report, published today (1). Nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions also continued to breach legal limits, while dust pollution increased, reaching the highest level since the current rules entered force in 2018.
June 19, 2026 | Read more The Western Balkan countries have low or no fossil gas dependence, but the United States is trying to change this. As a major gas producer, its approach to the region is increasingly clashing with the EU’s decarbonisation agenda, raising the threat of increased import dependence or stranded assets.
June 11, 2026 | Read more With only three months to go until EU Member States must submit their national restoration plans, EuroNatur and Bankwatch are warning that implementation of the EU’s Nature Restoration Regulation will not be possible without sufficient dedicated public funding. In a new report launched today at an event in the European Parliament, they highlight that, without adequate EU funding, many national restoration plans may prove ineffective, failing to restore all damaged ecosystems by 2050. And in the absence of the European Commission’s long-awaited 2025 financing report, governments are now without essential guidance on investment needs and funding pathways.
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