Serbia: Electricity price reform may bring investors

Published on 28. January 2014., News Serbia Energy

As Serbia is more closer to real market prices of electricity, the entrance door to investment, energy efficiency and investment in renewable energy will be opened wider. World now believes that energy efficiency is the largest energy source and says that if the current upward trend in electricity consumption continues, Serbia will become energy dependent like most countries in the region.

Unfortunately, there are still principled discussions about energy efficiency here, and there is hardly any real progress. Similarly is with the electricity losses in distribution. And that segment is “significant source “of energy in Serbia, but measures to reduce them did not provide desired results so far.

Region of Southeast Europe has great reasons to continue with the energy market liberalization and to shape it according to EU directives. The investment funds will be available only in this way and it will be obvious benefit of large markets.

Serbia comes closer to the European Union mostly in the energy sector, where the first steps towards joining were made ​​precisely by signing the Energy Community Treaty. The roadmap, which reforms the energy sector in Serbia, involves activities unbundling and market opening, as well as other segments of the market liberalization. Previous experience, analysis and comparison with other countries in the region show that the implementation of the action plan of complete harmonization will be largely completed in 2017. Serbia is therefore on good track to reform sector successfully, with the increase of the intensity of the reform process.

The cooperation with other countries in the region is not only necessary for the fulfillment of obligations under the Energy Community Treaty, but also because in this way it achieves significant exchange of experience, technology, and the inflow of new investments. Forms of such cooperation, she said, should clearly define and set targets.

Without customs duty and restrictions

– The positive economic side of the Energy Community is reflected, among other things, in the market creation where customs duties and quantitative restrictions on imports and exports of energy network are prohibited (retail transmission system). This means that the electricity transmission is free and anyone can sell and purchase as much energy as he wants, if this does not jeopardize the system or the people. Moreover , if it is abused this “if” , so often used  “exception” and limited traffic , the Energy Community has a right to take appropriate measures to create a single market in the region without internal frontiers in network energy.