Serbian Energy Minister says no jobs lost in energy transition

Zorana Mihajlović
N1/arhiva

Serbian Energy Minister Zorana Mihailovic told the Kopaonik Business Forum on Wednesday that no one will lose their job because of the energy transition.

Mihailovic said that the government plans to invest 16 billin Euro in green energy over the next 10-15 years, creating new capacities and jobs. “Every other interest is often manipulative or private,” she said.

Commenting the strike at the Kolubara mine, the minister said that she wants the public to know that the Serbian power company (EPS) is not for sale, adding that she found the protest unusual. She said that it never crossed her mind that the strike was organized to oust her from her post. She said that the strike cost the EPS almost half a million Euro. “We believe that there is no need to build new thermal power plants and we insist on completing projects that EPS invested in as soon as possible,” she said.

Mihailovic said that the energy transition is an issue which can no longer be on hold and recalled that laws on renewable energy sources and energy efficiency had been adopted to enable the transition and added that Serbia uses 40 percent more energy than it needs.

The minister said that there are plans to invest 150 million Euro into energy efficiency projects next year. “We want to see roofs in Serbia covered in solar panels,” she said and added that energy use is an issue of state and public interest. Mihailovic said that Serbia will not be depend on others for electricity during the transition but warned that Serbia will have to pay more than a billion Euro a year in carbon dioxide emission taxes because of its thermal power plants.