On Tuesday (22 August), Serbia’s Mining and Energy Minister Dubravka Đedović held a meeting with the President of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce Marko Čadež about promoting Serbia’s potential in energy and mining to new investors.
“The doors of the Ministry are always open to proposals and initiatives coming from the business sector, as I believe that the quality of our cooperation is crucial for strengthening our economy’s capacities by meeting European standards related to energy and environmental protection,” Minister Đedović said.
Mr Čadež pointed out that Serbia and the Western Balkans have great potential when it comes to critical mineral raw materials and that it is of strategic importance to be on the map of European partners, as well as for the region to become part of the single European market.
“The Ministry and the Chamber of Commerce should work in partnership to promote Serbia’s potential in energy and mining, given our energy potentials and critical mineral resources that we possess, which have already garnered significant interest from investors, primarily from European Union countries. Significant investments will be required in the energy transition process to achieve greater energy security and transition to cleaner energy sources, while also ensuring that meeting European standards related to energy and environmental protection does not negatively impact the competitiveness of our economy,” the Minister added.
In late August, the arrival of Rantum Capital, a German investment fund, is expected, along with a conference where the potential and examples of good practices of the Serbian energy sector will be presented, Mr Čadež said.
Mr Čadež informed the Minister about the chamber’s plans to organise a Green Academy on the circular economy, the Cross-Border Carbon Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), energy efficiency, green financing and standards. These workshops will be intended for entrepreneurs to “maintain competitiveness” and “navigate intensive changes” in EU legislation and business environment in the context of the green transition.
Discussions were also held about a carbon emissions trading system for the Western Balkans region, based on the mechanisms that are already in place in the EU. Through analyses at the European and national levels in the future, a model applicable to the countries in the region should be developed, the meeting’s participants noted.
