Bosnia’s new State Energy Strategy wrongly relies on an increase in thermal power – despite its poor cost efficiency and negative impact on the environment – and its funding model is unclear, an energy expert warns.
Bosnia’s recently adopted energy strategy is based on outdated ideas that could make it hard for the country to fulfil its international obligations on renewable energy and might increase the cost of electricity, an expert in the field says.
Professor Mirza Kusljugic, from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering of the University of Tuzla, author of a critical analysis of the strategy, told BIRN that while Bosnia hopes its focus on thermal power plants will enable it to apply for EU Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance funds, IPA, the focus is wrong.
“The focus should be on renewable energy sources and energy savings, which is something that the EU supports strongly,” he told BIRN.
“Now I expect Bosnia will have to have a new strategy, or try to improve this one,” Kusljugic added.
The same expert noted also that while renewable energy and energy savings form part of international obligations, Bosnia’s new strategy for the 2018-2035 period does not address that topic.
Another problem with the strategy, according to Kusljugic, is that it does not explain where the state will find the funds for the new model, which he says raises concerns that the price of electricity will have to go up.
Moreover, the strategy has to be followed by new laws on the electricity and gas market amid unresolved disputes between Bosnia’s two entities, Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, over the transfer of laws from entity to state level.
At the moment, laws that regulate the electricity market fall under the jurisdiction of the entities – and it is not likely they will be transferred to the state level any time soon, Kusljugic explained.
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