The Western Balkans residential Green Economy Financing Facility: Results so far and recommendations for further action
January 31, 2024
This briefing assesses the effectiveness of the energy efficiency credit lines for households financed through the Green Economy Financing Facility, in terms of environmental sustainability and attractiveness for users in all six Western Balkan countries.
Initiative for Coal Regions in Transition for Western Balkans and Ukraine: where we are and how to move forward
January 22, 2024
The Initiative for Coal Regions in Transition for Western Balkans and Ukraine platform builds on the experiences of the EU Initiative for coal regions in transition since 2017, with both initiatives contributing to implementing the European Green Deal.
Civil society comments on the EBRD’s good governance policies with focus on human rights due diligence
January 15, 2024
Together with other civil society organisations, Bankwatch submitted comments on the EBRD’s good governance policies, which are currently under revision.
Bitola’s heating future: a pipeline to nowhere or solar solutions?
December 22, 2023
Bitola in North Macedonia is currently pursuing a decades-old district heating plan connected to the nearby coal power plant – which will, however, close in a few years. But better alternatives exist, as discussed at a recent event in the city, and young people, especially those involved in information sciences and technology, should play a key role in moving them forward.
Time to put an end to Albania’s fossil fuel déjà vu
December 21, 2023
In the last two decades, residents of Vlora, a lively tourist city on the Albanian coast, have had a slew of mostly unsuccessful oil and gas projects foisted on them. No wonder a recent event there called on the government to stop its costly fossil fuel experiments and seize the opportunity to declare Albania’s electricity production and consumption 100 per cent renewable.
New Biofuelwatch briefing exposes Tuzla power plant’s planned biomass unit as a dead end
December 21, 2023
A new briefing by Biofuelwatch, launched today, has revealed that the planned use of biomass energy crops in a new unit at the Tuzla coal power plant in Bosnia and Herzegovina is an unfeasible and environmentally risky endeavour.
Following the money: Romania
December 19, 2023
This briefing aims to comprehend the just transition outlined in the Romania’s Territorial Just Transition Plans for six designated regions – Hunedoara, Gorj, Dolj, Galați, Prahova, and Mureș – receiving funds from the Just Transition Fund.
The Upper Horizons complex, Bosnia and Herzegovina
December 18, 2023
The Upper Horizons hydropower complex has been planned since the mid-20th century, and is planned to consist of three plants — Dabar, Nevesinje and Bileća — linked by a series of tunnels and channels. If completed, it would have a devastating impact on the karst ecosystems of eastern Herzegovina and beyond.
The Ulog hydropower plant on the river Neretva, Bosnia and Herzegovina
December 18, 2023
The Ulog plant, with a 53-metre high dam, is currently being built on the upper Neretva in the Republika Srpska entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the middle of a nominated candidate Emerald site – an area which should be protected under the Bern Convention.
Why the Bulgaria-Turkey gas deal could be a Russian Trojan horse
December 13, 2023
Promoted as a means to diversify gas sources, an agreement signed earlier this year by the Bulgarian government to import fossil gas from Turkey is only likely to provide a backdoor for Russian energy and undermine efforts to alleviate Europe’s dependence on fossil fuels
