Citizen’s request to deny state guarantee for Sostanj lignite power plant loan
March 26, 2012
The director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies is of Slovenian origin. He sent an open letter to the Slovenian parliament requesting to deny the state guarantee for a loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) for Unit 6 at the Sostanj lignite thermal power plant.
Formal complaints lodged against questionable EBRD energy loans
March 13, 2012
Early in the new year Bankwatch and partner groups lodged two complaints with the EBRD’s Public Complaint Mechanism (PCM): one concerning the loan agreement for the Rivne-Kyiv High Voltage Line project in Ukraine, the other concerning the EBRD’s Šoštanj lignite thermal power plant loan in Slovenia.
EIB’s clean energy credentials continue to be compromised, policy review offers clean break from fossil fuels
March 13, 2012
‘Carbon Rising’, a new study from Bankwatch, catalogues the EIB’s energy lending for the period 2007-2010 during which time the bank loaned EUR 40 billion to energy projects across the EU and EUR 8 billion outside the EU. This lending was guided by the EIB’s first energy policy ‘Clean Energy for Europe: A Reinforced EIB Contribution’, adopted by the bank in 2007.
Letters to EBRD and EIB: Irregularities in the Sostanj project in Slovenia
March 13, 2012
With this letter, Bankwatch, together with Focus, Association for Sustainable Development and Greenpeace Slovenia are informing the EIB’s and EBRD’s highest decision-making bodies about recent developments in the case of the Sostanj lignite power plant that in our view should prompt the banks to drop their participation in this investment. The EBRD’s president Thomas Mirow replied on April 16, 2012 (download his response (pdf)) informing us about the suspension of the EBRD’s loan for the Sostanj project. Just one day later, another letter from the EBRD (download as pdf) informed us that the suspension is not a formal suspension.
State Commission warns of corruption and illegality at Šoštanj
March 13, 2012
Fresh controversy hit the proposed 600 MW lignite power plant at Šoštanj in Slovenia in late February when the Slovenian State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption issued a report in which it says corruption conditions existed at the time of the awarding of the construction contract to French company Alstom and continue to exist today. The Commission report also states that Slovenian lobbying legislation has been breached by the goings-on at Šoštanj.
Vreoci community requests EBRD to suspend credit arrangement with Kolubara
March 13, 2012
The Vreoci community from the Kolubara mining basin requests from the EBRD to suspend the loan arrangements for the Kolubara lignite mine due to the constant and increasing violations of human and property rights by the Public Company Mining Basin “Kolubara” – Lazarevac.
High risk of corruption in Sostanj TES 6: Report by Slovenian Commission for the Prevention of Corruption (unofficial translation)
February 23, 2012
For many years TES 6 has been surrounded by rumours of corruption. In February 2012 the Slovene State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption published a report stating that acts of corruption could have influenced the awarding of the contract to French company ALSTOM and that the law on the state guarantee itself was initially drafted by employees of HSE, the owner of the Sostanj power complex. Slovene NGO Focus Association for Sustainable Development has translated the report to English. (The original report (in Slovenian language) is available for download here (pdf).)
The dirty French-Slovenian connection
February 23, 2012
Slovenian state anti-corruption body claims ALSTOM could have benefited from corrupt acts to get deal to build new lignite plant at Sostanj.
Complaint to EBRD’s Public Complaint Mechanism: The Sostanj thermal power plant project
January 17, 2012
Bankwatch, Slovenian NGO Focus and Environmental Legal Service (CZ) ask the EBRD’s Project Complaint Mechanism to undertake a compliance review of whether the bank has complied with its Environmental and Social Policy 2008 in relation to two aspects of the Sostanj lignite thermal power plant: (a) Claims by the EBRD that the project in question is “CCS ready” and (b) the EBRD’s assessment of whether Slovenia can fulfil its obligations in meeting long-term EU climate goals if it undertakes the project.
Complaint regarding Sostanj TES6: CCS, public procurement, economic vialbility
January 9, 2012
The complaint, filed with the European Investment Bank by Environmental Law Service (CZ) and Focus Association for Sustainable Development (SI), outlines controversies in relation to the Sostanj lignite thermal power plant with regards to the following aspects: insubstantial allegation that the project is „carbon capture ready“ and that the assessment submitted by the operator fulfils the criteria set up by the relevant EU Directive, failure to comply with the relevant EU directive for public procurements, questionable economic viability of the project.
