TERPEIS Balkan – Triggering Emissions Reductions in Power- and Emissions-Intensive Sectors

Background

The European Union has committed itself to become climate-neutral by 2050. Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Albania are aligning themselves to this goal and are aiming to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. By endorsing the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans (GAWB), they are pledging themselves to the European Green Deal’s key elements. This requires them to fulfil specific obligations, including the submission of National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs), however, they lack robust policy instruments to address the green energy transition and climate change mitigation. The EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) are mechanisms that these countries are not ready to address within their existing decarbonisation pathways. Climate policies in these three countries are often developed without the involvement of civil society.

Project

The project adds a bottom-up scientific and social component to existing regional initiatives, in particular the GAWB. It builds on the GAWB’s goal to explore options for including the Western Balkans in the EU ETS. So it contributes to more ambitious climate policies and their alignment with EU regulations on climate neutrality, by supporting the development of more aspiring NECPs, Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and Long-term Strategies (LTSs) for accession to the EU ETS.

To enhance the policy processes in each of the three target countries, civil society is empowered to participate in the formulation and monitoring of climate policies. In order to be able to fulfil this role, civil society representatives are supported with a variety of workshops, seminars and targeted interviews. To inform this process, economy-wide mitigation pathway projections will be created and revised in consultation with sector representatives.

By supporting policy makers, the private sector, civil society, and academia and building their analytical capacity, this project facilitates alignment of the target countries’ climate and energy policies with the EU ETS and CBAM. As a result, they will be able to implement climate change mitigation measures and reduce emissions from sectors such as steel, cement, electricity, and chemicals.

The project team establishes a community of experts from the Balkans: It will share examples of good practice about the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the sectors covered by the EU ETS that are relevant to each country.

Letzte Aktualisierung: April 2024