Bankwatch: Hydropower Subsidies Remain an Issue in Western Balkans
February 1, 2021
“Under the Energy Community Treaty, the Western Balkan countries must apply EU State aid rules in the energy sector, including the …
Nenskra hydropower project: update
January 29, 2021
Since it was first proposed, the Nenskra hydropower project in Georgia has raised significant controversy and concerns among the indigenous Svan communities living near the proposed plant, as well as the general public in Georgia. The accountability mechanisms of the EIB, EBRD and ADB have found numerous violations of the lenders’ environmental and human rights standards, as well as violations of the rights of affected Svan communities.
Serbia urged by Bankwatch to abolish SHPPs incentives
January 18, 2021
According to data from Serbian Energy Regulatory Agency AERS, in 2019 state-owned power utility EPS collected only 59 million euros from …
Green Ideals, Dirty Energy: The EU-backed Renewables Drive That Went Wrong
December 15, 2020
BIRN reveals how a campaign to build renewable energy plants, supported by the EU, siphoned away subsidies and wrecked pristine waterways in Serbia and beyond.
Podnesena žalba protiv BiH zbog planiranih hidroelektrana na Neretvi
October 22, 2020
Sekreterijatu Bernske konvencije o zaštiti evropskih divljih životinja i prirodnih staništa danas je podnesena žalba protiv Bosne i Hercegovine.
How to better apply the law to small hydropower in the Energy Community?
June 16, 2020
Prompted by widespread public resistance to small hydropower plants in the Western Balkans, the Energy Community Secretariat has recently been consulting the public on guidelines for the proper application of environmental and State aid legislation in such cases. Bankwatch’s input highlights a plethora of common deficiencies that need to be addressed.
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Assault on the Neretva basin runs into blockades and lawsuits
May 21, 2020
The global Covid-19 pandemic has stopped neither hydropower companies nor nature defenders from pursuing their goals in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The latest flashpoint is the Neretva basin, where locals and NGOs are resisting construction with blockades and lawsuits.
Montenegro must stop incentivising the destruction of its precious rivers
May 8, 2020
In recent years Montenegro was forced to stop granting incentives for renewable energy projects due to public outcry about small hydropower decimating several small rivers and enriching businesses close to the ruling party. Now a new draft Law on Energy looks set to relaunch the incentives scheme. Why haven’t lessons been learned?
The Valbona River in Peril
May 7, 2020
The Albanian government won’t save an ecologically and culturally significant river from hydropower, advocates say. But maybe its people will. Source: The Valbona River in Peril
Fears revive in the villages of Shuakhevi as one of Georgia’s biggest hydropower plants starts operation
April 17, 2020
Georgia’s Shuakhevi hydropower plant (HPP), which once promised to bring energy independence to the country but collapsed soon after becoming operational in 2017, has come back to life. But its return has not been welcome.
