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October 31, 2025
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Serbia’s distribution system operator plans comprehensive restructuring

Serbia’s distribution system operator, Elektrodistribucija Srbije (EDS), plans a comprehensive restructuring to improve financial stability, operational efficiency, and investment planning capacity, in line with the country’s stand-by arrangement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

EDS has launched a tender to select a consultant to develop a restructuring plan. The deadline for submitting bids is set for November 28.

The consultant’s job will consist of two phases. The first phase involves analyzing the existing business model and designing and developing a new sustainable model. In the second phase, the consultant will support the implementation of the recommendations defined in the first phase, as well as the guidelines arising from the proposed financial restructuring plan, EDS has announced.

The consultant is to develop a restructuring plan and support its implementation

During the first phase, the consultant will analyze EDS’ current operations, including its financial position, key business processes, management structure, and IT systems. Based on the analysis, a target business model and a financial restructuring plan will be developed, including scenarios and stress tests to assess the company’s resilience to potential challenges.

The second phase will focus on implementing the recommendations and the proposed model, including coordination with internal teams, monitoring progress, evaluating the effectiveness of changes, and supporting employee training. Special attention will be given to digitalization, business process optimization, and customer service improvements.

The project should help digitalize business processes

Some elements of EDS’s operations that are expected to be improved include meter issuance and reading, as well as electricity loss management. The consultant’s job also involves mapping IT systems and projects that support the automation and digitalization of business processes, according to EDS.

The consultant will also be expected to develop a comprehensive implementation plan, including timelines, resource allocation, and project risk management strategies, and provide regular progress reports highlighting challenges and proposing steps to address them.

A final report on the restructuring efforts will also be required, including lessons learned and recommendations for future initiatives, according to EDS.

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October 31, 2025
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Serbia plans new mining law to align legislation with EU rules on critical raw materials

Serbia’s Ministry of Mining and Energy has launched a public consultation on a preliminary framework for a new law on mining and geological exploration. One of the goals of the new law is to align national legislation with European Union regulations on critical raw materials, sustainable development, and the circular economy.

The law will be harmonized with the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act and the European Green Deal, to gradually align Serbia’s regulatory framework with the EU’s goals for sustainable mining, climate neutrality, and secure minerals supply, according to a document outlining the basis for the draft law.

Earlier this year, the European Commission included a lithium mining project in Serbia among the EU’s strategic projects for critical raw materials. Rio Tinto’s Jadar project is the only one on the list that involves the extraction of lithium and boron.

Lithium mining in Serbia is among the EU’s strategic projects for critical raw materials

Regarding harmonization with EU regulations, Serbia intends to introduce standardized reporting systems in line with the Pan-European Reserves and Resources Reporting Committee (PERC) standards, the UN Framework Classification for Resources (UNFC), and the Petroleum Resources Management System (PRMS), as well as implement ESG principles, which integrate environmental, social, and governance requirements into all phases of geological exploration and mining.

The main objective of the new law is to establish a modern, transparent, and efficient system for managing mineral and other geological resources in line with sustainable development standards, while strengthening the role of the state as the owner and steward of the country’s natural resources, according to the document.

It further highlights the need for more clearly defined mechanisms to ensure the application of sustainable mining principles and compliance with environmental standards, in line with advanced global practices. Investors’ obligations regarding environmental protection, land reclamation, and site remediation should be more precisely regulated during exploration and mining.

Investors’ obligations concerning environmental protection need to be more clearly defined

Improving the legal framework for granting exploration and mining rights is of particular importance, the document states. This would be done through models that ensure greater legal certainty, more efficient oversight, and consistent application of environmental and social standards, in line with sustainable mining principles.

The new law will also set clear criteria for identifying and protecting strategic mineral deposits, and ensure they are included in spatial and development plans. This would enable long-term protection of national interests in the field of mineral resources.

The law will digitalize permitting procedures for exploration and mining

The law will envisage digitalization and electronic processing in all administrative phases through a unified information system that enables electronic application and permitting, while allowing public access to data on exploration and mining fields.

The new law is also intended to ensure gradual alignment with European policies in the fields of green and digital transition.

The public consultation will be open until November 11, during which time citizens and organizations can submit proposals, comments, and suggestions.

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October 31, 2025
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Serbia eyes last quarter of 2027 for power market coupling with EU – SEEPEX CEO

Serbia is targeting the last quarter of 2027 for coupling with the European Union’s single day-ahead market, Serbian power exchange SEEPEX’s Managing Director Miloš Mladenović said.

Miloš Mladenović was one of the speakers at the Energy Connectivity, Resilience and Security in Southeastern Europe panel at the 14th International Forum on Energy for Sustainable Development in Skopje.

He recalled that a few weeks ago, the European Commission finally published the governance for the verification process regarding the transposition of the Electricity Integration Package (EIP) for market coupling by the contracting parties of the Energy Community.

SEEPEX would try to reduce the required time

Also, he added, it would took up to six months starting from the new year to implement the Market Coupling Operator Integration Plan (MCO IP).

“I think that in the middle of next year, we can start with this famous 18 months, which is regular time to implement the single day-ahead coupling (SDAC),” Mladenović stressed.

He underlined that within the extended ADEX family, with EPEX Spot and the transmission system operators (TSOs), which are shareholders, they would try to reduce the required time at the market coupling steering committee.

“Our common goal now is to try to catch this time slot, the last quarter of 2027,” he stated.

Mladenović noted that it is usual to use the first quarter of a year for the single day-ahead coupling (SDAC), and the last quarter for single intraday coupling (SIDC).

SEEPEX plans to proceed with intraday coupling with Hungary

“I hope that we would have understanding within the nominated electricity market operators (NEMOs) and the TSOs community to catch this thing and to have this last quarter of 2027 as a time slot for SDAC coupling,” he explained.

After that, SEEPEX plans, in his words, to proceed with intraday coupling with Hungary.

He pointed out that a few days ago, SEEPEX received positive feedback from the Italian Border Working Table (IBWT) regarding its initiative to couple Serbia with Bulgaria.

Now the request will be provided to national regulators for a confirmation letter, he added.

“I hope that for all other neighboring contracting parties of the Energy Community, the Serbia-Hungary coupling could be a vehicle to speed up the process,” Mladenović asserted.

European Commission to allow acceleration of market coupling

Mladenović also highlighted the experience Serbia had with the legal and regulatory side of the coupling process. “I will put business and technical parts aside, because I’m sure that my colleagues, both the power exchanges and the TSOs, are ready to implement all that is needed for the coupling,” he added.

The legal and regulatory process is, in his words, very demanding, because there are 10 grid codes to be transposed to align all the rules with the country’s market rules, with the transmission codes and with the legal framework.

He expressed doubt that the neighboring countries could achieve such speed.

“It could be some joint request to the European Commission to try to make coupling processes parallel. We insisted on this from the beginning. I hope that our colleagues from the region will get the green light to implement the project even before the legal and regulatory framework are in place,” Mladenović stressed.

He said he believes that the Serbia-Hungary coupling and the future Serbia-Bulgaria coupling could be a shiny start, leading soon to the entire region’s coupling with the EU internal market.

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October 31, 2025
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Enery, SmartPulse launch regional partnership for multi-market optimization

Austrian green energy producer Enery and Turkish software company SmartPulse have entered a strategic partnership to deliver advanced solutions for the management and trading of renewable energy and storage assets. The collaboration aims to amplify market results for renewable energy producers and battery owners, while strengthening integration into the regional energy markets.

Enery Portfolio Optimization (EPO) – the licensed power trader of Enery managing a portfolio of over 750 MW of renewables assets and 700 MWh of battery capacity, will enhance its services through SmartPulse’s multi-market optimization platform, which automates trading, delivers real-time dispatch, and provides analytics and forecasting. The Turkish software company’s services coupled with EPO’s market know-how accelerate revenue growth and strengthen financial outcomes, according to the announcement.

The combined offering will be available for standalone and co-located storage assets on the Romanian market as part of a wider regional partnership. The platform aims to ensure the highest profitability from day-ahead, intraday and ancillary services markets, while ensuring the optimal physical dispatch of the asset, the Austrian company pointed out.

Balancing group members gain access to market opportunities

The service captures the full spectrum of financial arbitrage opportunities, reserve and balancing energy market participation to maximize revenue potential, Enery added. By joining its balancing group, renewables producers and battery storage owners gain access to all markets opportunities, reduced balancing costs, and 24/7 monitoring and trading through an artificial intelligence–powered platform, the update reads.

The offering in Romania will be part of a wider regional partnership

“Our international expertise in storage and renewables optimisation combined with SmartPulse’s innovative platform allows us to be more flexible and deliver tailored solutions for each asset. This partnership ensures that our Romanian clients will receive the highest quality services and optimised profitability from their assets,” said Enery’s Head of Energy Trading Petya Dimova.

Romania is among most dynamic power markets in Europe

The two companies stressed that they are bringing international experience and know-how in optimizing the value of large-scale renewables and storage assets to the Romanian market. The joint approach ensures clients can focus on business development, operations, and maintenance, while entrusting the financial realization of their electricity to expert hands, they said.

“Romania is one of the most dynamic power markets in Europe, and we are proud to make it a priority in our growth journey. By partnering with Enery, we bring our technology together with their strong local expertise to deliver advanced optimization and trading solutions,” Head of Global Growth at SmartPulse Uygar Yörük stated.

Enery, an independent power producer, operates a diversified portfolio of 511 MW and has 212 MW under construction. Its development pipeline amounts to almost 10 GW across 10 countries in Central and Eastern Europe. In the region that Balkan Green Energy News covers, the company is active in Romania, Bulgaria and Slovenia.

SmartPulse, founded in 2018 in Istanbul, focuses on short-term power trading automation. The firm has just been acquired by Volue.

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October 30, 2025
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Margün Energy takes over licenses for potential 505 MW in geothermal power plants

Turkish contractor and solar power plant operator Margün Energy, which is expanding to geothermal energy including lithium extraction, acquired nine geothermal licenses that enable access to a potential power production capacity of 505 MW. It counts on USD 405 million per year from electricity sales alone.

Margün Energy, listed at the Istanbul Stock Exchange since 2021, said it would establish a subsidiary called Margün Jeotermal. It would be responsible for nine geothermal licenses in the provinces of Denizli, in southwestern Turkey, and Manisa, in the west.

The company said it is targeting 3.86 TWh in annual electricity output upon completing the investments. In a regulatory filing, Margün Energy revealed that it conducted the transaction through its fully-owned subsidiary Bosphorus Yenilenebilir Enerji, which would own 77.5% of the new business.

Having a potential new power production capacity of 505 MW overall, the company counts on USD 405 million in sales. It translates to an annual earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization of USD 324 million, it added.ž

Turkey is the fourth in the world in geothermal power capacity.

The company mostly operates solar power plants and works as a contractor for engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) and operations and maintenance.

Notably, it owns the largest stake in Enda Energy Holding. The affiliate operates four hydropower plants, five wind power plants, one geothermal power plant and three solar power plants of 200 MW altogether.

Margün Energy intends to search for lithium in geothermal waters in Seferihisar in western Turkey, where it took over a 12 MW geothermal power plant earlier this year. It also launched a project to add a photovoltaic unit of 5.4 MW to the existing facility and create a hybrid power plant.

Turkey is the fourth in the world in geothermal power capacity.

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October 30, 2025
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First section of Čibuk 2 wind park in Serbia begins trial operation

Masdar and Taaleri Energia generated the first megawatt-hours in their Čibuk 2 wind farm in Serbia. The first 35 MW out of the planned 154 MW is now in trial operation.

The installation of all 22 turbines in the Čibuk 2 wind power plant northeast of Belgrade is set to be completed by mid-November, Renewable Energy Sources of Serbia (RES Serbia) revealed. Trial operation of the first part began on October 21 and 35 MW has been connected to the grid so far, according to the update.

The entire wind farm will come online in early December, the association said. The project in the municipality of Kovin in the south Banat area is for 154 MW. The wind farm is between the villages of Bavanište and Mramorak.

Abu Dhabi Future Energy Co. – Masdar and Finland-based Taaleri Energia’s Taaleri SolarWind III Fund reached the financial close just 13 months ago. At the same time, special purpose vehicle (SPV) Čibuk 2 Wind Energy, a subsidiary of their joint venture Masdar Taaleri Generation, signed a power purchase agreement (PPA), as well as contracts on balancing and a market premium, with state-owned power utility Elektroprivreda Srbije (EPS).

UniCredit and Erste provided project financing, while Nordex is the equipment supplier.

The Čibuk 2 project secured a market premium at Serbia’s first wind power auction.

The facility is located next to the existing Čibuk 1 wind farm of 158 MW, the largest in Serbia. Masdar and Taaleri Energia commissioned it in 2019.

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