EU-China leaders’ meeting: EU must do more to tackle legal breaches by Chinese companies in Europe, say civil society organisations
September 14, 2020
The European Union needs to step up its actions on violations of EU law by Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in Europe, warned civil society groups working in southeast Europe today (1), as European and Chinese leaders meet online in lieu of the postponed Leipzig summit.
Chinese-built coal projects in Europe
September 14, 2020
A real and immediate threat to the EU’s decarbonisation efforts
Illegal lignite mine expansion in Bosnia and Herzegovina prompts NGO formal complaint
July 30, 2020
The ongoing expansion at the Gacko lignite mine in Bosnia and Herzegovina, happening already for over three years and treated lightly by local environmental authorities, breaches the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive, argues the complaint submitted today to the Energy Community’s secretariat by the Center for Environment from Banja Luka. The organisation has sought remedies on domestic level on two occasions, but the Ministry of Environment took no action.
Priority energy infrastructure projects for the EU’s neighbours still anchored in fossil fuels
July 28, 2020
The energy projects proposed by the Energy Community countries for priority status, including privileged access to public funds, have now passed the evaluation stage, expecting a final decision by the year’s end. On the bright side, at least two megalomaniac projects were dropped. On the dark one, the remaining projects floor the gas pedal.
РЕК Битола со најголеми емисии на сулфур диоксид на Балканот
July 1, 2020
Термоелектраните на јаглен на Западен Балкан продолжуваат да емитуваат „неверојатно високи количини на загадувачи во воздухот.“ РЕК Битола е еден од најголемите загадувачи, но граѓанските организации се сомневаат дека комбинатот ќе ги намали емисиите до 2027 година.
Bosnia-Herzegovina: Illegal lignite mine expansion at Gacko must be halted
June 26, 2020
An environmental impact assessment process is currently ongoing to expand the open-cast lignite mine at Gacko in Bosnia-Herzegovina. But the mine expansion started long ago.
Western Balkan coal power plants breach pollution limits by 6 times, for the second year in a row
June 23, 2020
Two and a half years since pollution control legislation under the Energy Community Treaty obliged Western Balkan governments to apply EU norms, a new Bankwatch analysis finds air pollution – primarily sulphur dioxide (SO2) and dust emissions – from coal-fired power plants remains stubbornly high, choking communities across the region and beyond.
Comply or Close 2020
June 23, 2020
In 2016 alone, roughly 3900 people in the region and in neighbouring countries are estimated to have died as a result of chronic pollution from all existing coal plants. This report is an update of an analysis released by Bankwatch late last year, now including 2019 data.
Može li Šoštanj biti lekcija BiH i Srbiji?
June 3, 2020
Dugotrajna saga o slovenačkoj elektrani Šoštanj 6 doživjela je dramatičan zaokret prošle sedmice. Slovenski tužitelji podnijeli su tužbe protiv 12 ljudi za pranje novca. U međuvremenu elektrana Šoštanj je ostvarila neto gubitak od 58,5 miliona eura. Mo
Slovene prosecutors file charges over coal plant corruption
May 25, 2020
The long-running saga of Slovenia’s overpriced Šoštanj 6 coal power plant took a dramatic turn last week when Slovene prosecutors filed charges including money laundering against 12 people and two companies. Meanwhile, in 2018, the Šoštanj power plant as a whole generated a net loss of EUR 58.5 million. Why are nearby Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina – both countries that are planning new coal plants – not learning any lessons?
