As part of the entry process to the European Union, Serbia should determine its energy and climate goals for 2030. One of the most important components in defining and achieving these objectives is cooperation in energy and agriculture. This cooperation should be based on a rational, sustainable and socially acceptable use of biomass for energy production and energy for agriculture.
In December 2018, the Economics Institute organized a workshop on the “Contribution of agriculture to the energy transition”. The aim of this session was to open a discussion regarding regulatory frameworks and to specify recommendations on how to support a broader use of biomass in electricity production. The speakers were representatives of the Ministry of Mining and Energy, the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, the UNDP, the Energovizija company from Croatia and two domestic companies (ITN Group and Biolektra) that are active in the use of biomass for energy.
The general conclusion was that current Serbian legislation provides acceptable conditions for investors. Foreign support is valuable and useful for the development of general conditions for the use of biomass (a good example is the development of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce’s web portal for biomass) and in the building of power plants. Domestic companies are also interested in developing projects. However, it is expected that the national regulatory framework will be improved in accordance with good practices and the experience of the EU.