Djedovic Handanovic: Serbia only one in region to have fulfilled conditions for access to EU’s single electricity market

Serbia is the first and so far the only one from our region to have fulfilled the conditions for access to the EU’s single electricity market and we are confident that we will be among the first to become part of the common market, said Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic after talks with EEAS Deputy Director for Western Europe Emanuele Giaufret about planned investments and the implementation of reforms in the energy sector.

– We are also working hard on reforms in the gas sector, which are an important part of the reform agenda – said Djedovic Handanovic, as reported by her office.

Building infrastructure and diversification are key to long-term security of gas supply, she added.

– In the gas sector, priorities include the construction of gas interconnections to Romania and North Macedonia, which are important for the diversification of sources and routes of supply, then the construction of a new main gas pipeline from Nis to Horgos, as well as the expansion of natural gas storage capacities. We are also planning to sign an agreement for the construction of a gas power plant with Azerbaijan – the minister stated.

Speaking about the sanctions on Naftna industrija Srbije, she said that the agreement reached between Gazpromneft and the Hungarian MOL on the sale of the Russian stake in NIS had opened the way to a sustainable solution for NIS, namely the lifting of US sanctions against that company.

When it comes to nuclear energy, the minister reminded that a Preliminary Technical Study on the Peacetime Use of Nuclear Energy in Serbia had been prepared in cooperation with the French EDF, which, among other things, included an analysis of the state and readiness of the electricity grid for a nuclear power plant, a study of available technologies and potential partners.

Energy projects for which financing has been approved from the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF), as well as projects for which Serbia could potentially apply for EU grants, were discussed at the meeting.

Giaufret, former EU Ambassador to Serbia, said that there were significant developments, but also challenges, in Serbia’s energy sector and pointed out the importance that the European Union placed on reforms in the energy sector and the dynamics of their implementation.

Ministarstvo rudarstva i energetike Republike Srbije

Ministry of Mining and Energy

Dubravka Đedović Handanović

Emanuele Giaufret

EU single electricity market