Vlahovic: Energy security priority of development strategy for Serbia's energy sector

BELGRADE - A development strategy for Serbia's energy sector highlights energy security, development of the energy market and an overall transition to sustainable energy as the priorities, State Secretary at the Serbian Ministry of Mining and Energy Sonja Vlahovic said on Friday.

"The strategy implementation programme contains activities that need to be carried out in the next three years (2026-2028) to achieve the adopted goals. That means having defined stakeholders, time frames, required funds and potential sources of funding, as well as key effects of the implemented measures on the energy sector," Vlahovic said in a debate hosted by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia.

She said projects in the electric power sector, especially in the field of renewables, accounted for the majority of planned investments, and added that carrying out all the defined measures should result in a more secure, greener and more competitive energy sector in Serbia.

"Among other things, the implementation of the programme should contribute to boosting the share of renewable energy sources in power and heat generation by eight and three per cent, respectively, to strengthening transmission capacities, to making the distribution system management more efficient and to reducing energy consumption to a substantial extent. Implementation of planned activities will also result in an additional 400 mln cubic m of gas storage facilities and an ability to import a total of 2.3 bln cubic m of gas a year via interconnectors to be built with Romania and North Macedonia," an official statement quoted Vlahovic as saying.

She added that there were also plans to diversify crude oil supplies and increase compulsory reserves of oil and oil derivatives.