First Trebinje Energy Summit – SET 2020 to focus on Western Balkans’ energy future

The first edition of the Trebinje Energy Summit – SET 2020, to be held on March 05-06, will be dedicated to the Western Balkans’ energy future and the energy sector potentials of Republika Srpska. Experts, investors, representatives of the NGO sector and international institutions, as well as decision-makers, will get together to discuss the region’s geopolitical energy outlook, renewable energy sources, smart energy, and energy efficiency.

The summit, organized by SET Trebinje, in cooperation with power utility Elektroprivreda Republike Srpske (ERS) and the City of Trebinje, will provide an opportunity for investors and other stakeholders to get first-hand information about ongoing projects in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the new regulatory framework, as well as to meet with local decision-makers.

The summit will be held every year in the second week of November.

Aleksandar Branković, SET’s managing director, has told Balkan Green Energy News that the Trebinje Energy Summit – SET 2020 is envisioned as a two-day expert conference on latest achievements and projects in the field of energy and energy efficiency in Republika Srpska and the region.

The summit will provide an opportunity for investors to get first-hand information about ongoing projects in BiH and the new regulatory framework, as well as to meet with local decision-makers

The purpose of the summit, according to him, is to present good practices, attract foreign investment, and showcase the capacities of ERS and the region in terms of expertise and natural resources.

“At a plenary session, energy ministers from the region, whose attendance has been announced, will discuss the geopolitical energy outlook, and we also expect confirmation of attendance from highest officials of countries in the region,” said Branković.

On day one, the agenda includes a plenary session on the region’s geopolitical energy outlook and three panels: on the security of energy supply in the region, on the state of the energy market in South-East Europe, and on energy efficiency financing schemes in South-East Europe (see full agenda here).

The central event of the second day of the summit will be a panel on the future of renewable energy sources in the Western Balkans, which will discuss renewables’ advantages and disadvantages compared to fossil fuels. At the same time, very interesting discussions are expected at panels on the digitalization of grids and cities and new district heating solutions.