Serbia can get 700 million EUR worth investments only for wind parks in the next couple of years. Ministry of Resources’ recently adopted set of measures has announced the start of competition that big serious players from the east and west will participate in. Serbia won’t need to import electricity during winter after these investments. So the question is: Will those who earn a lot at the moment sit and let this to happen?
This is the hot wind for economy, instead of easy eco breeze. This is serious industry that grows in geometrical progress. Investments in renewable energy sources turns out to be much bigger from investments in the South Stream project and new TPPs in Serbia, especially if we count on hydro power potential. This redefines the story of renewable energy sources and puts them in the sphere of serious source of economy incomes, instead of ecology and environment sphere.
Why these investments don’t have such status among national authorities or media is the question of suicidal Serbian policy where Serbia goes right to debt bondage under a mask of friendship, brotherhood and social cooperation. Current hopeless situation of Srbijagas and the whole row of thermal power plants in Serbia indicates fatalness of a fraud called gasification.
There was completely crazy energy policy, postponing of investments, demagogic price policy and endemic corruption in national public energy companies. Supposedly, there was not enough money to invest in new energy objects but there was enough money to import electricity at high prices, to pay enormous expropriations and mechanization rents, to hire a bunch of incapable and unscrupulous people with appetite that is inversely proportional to their capability to do something useful. We should be shocked now with the situation that the donkey which was so long taught not to eat is finally near death i.e. EPS faced bankruptcy. This crazy policy will be finished soon because it’s clear that this condition is unbearable.
Serbia let this luxury to itself during economy crisis that it practically gives gas fields to Gasprom and that it charges the lowest mining rent in Europe and in the world, and it subsidizes the use of imported gas with state money, even though nobody can pay this subsidized price either. The price of this suicide would be much higher than it looks and eventual bankruptcy can bring Serbia to the point of no way back. Since we got enormous oil and gas price shock after NIS privatization, we shouldn’t suspect in similar scenario with reference to EPS and electricity price because no one will lead social politics but they will intend to make maximal earnings. If population gets friendly electricity price besides friendly oil and gas price, we’ll come to the point that normal life in Serbia becomes a mission impossible and then it would become clear that energy bondage of Serbia is actually the project to turn off Serbia as an independent state or become some kind of satellite entity according to the model of Warsaw Pact’s state. The life inside the country would be similar to the life of state from Warsaw Pact- poor population while natural resources and money go where they suppose to, out of country. Cheap electricity is the main factor that enables heating to millions of people because prices of heating on the base of oil fuel are extremely high so the question is whether gas price increases drastically, will Serbia stay out of woods or everyone will begin to use coal as fuel so people can’t breathe in cities because of pollution? So, announcement of EPS bankruptcy presents the announcement of turning off Serbia as an independent state.
Announcement of first investments in renewable energy sources presents the first serious step in other direction: step toward energy import decrease and first energy capacity that can be realized soon, much faster than several years’ construction of one big TPP or HPP. Wind parks are going to be constructed. One solar park has practically sprouted in Kursumlija. There are hundreds of small projects of HPPs that can be realized very fast. This participation in general energy production won’t be symbolic at all. On contrary, it would mean a lot and it will be available relatively fast. So we are happy because of announcements that this investment cycle is beginning, but it is hard to stop thinking pessimistically about project architects won’t let Serbia to strengthen its energy sector and decrease need for import.
Source Serbia Energy/Agencies
