Blogs

MEP Georgi Pirinski, rapporteur of the annual report on the European Investment Bank, shares his views on how to improve the way the bank operates.

Energoatom is currently unable to serve loans from European institutions. Even though a European Commission study assessed the company’s credit worthiness, Ukrainian taxpayers now have to pay back part of the loans.

In its EU funds spending plans, Slovakia has shown commendable dedication to making bioenergy more sustainable. Taking over the EU presidency in June, it will have a unique chance to apply its expertise to improve European regulations on biomass.

Last year in the EU, 12.8 GW of wind power capacity was installed – more than any other electricity generation source. This means that wind can now generate 11.4% of the EU electricity consumption in a normal wind year, according to Wind Europe. At the same time Belgium and Scotland have shut down their last coal plants, signalling the golden days of coal are far behind them.

Protests against large dams in Georgia's Svaneti mountains have led to confrontations with police. Locals are losing patience over the protracted consultation process on the project.

After months of protests and the people in Runcurel, a small town in Romania that is to be swallowed by a lignite mine, have finally received positive news from the Romanian government. During a meeting with Bankwatch Romania and Greenpeace Romania, the Minister for Energy Vlad Grigorescu confirmed that the government will do more to protect locals and their houses.

Read more background in our photo story

A graffiti in Warsaw marks the upcoming birthday of imprisoned Azeri journalist Khadija Ismayilova.

Three decades after Chernobyl, nuclear power remains a mainstay of Ukrainian energy supply. Despite persistent safety problems, the Ukrainian government has approved lifetime extensions for four of its 15 nuclear units since 2010, and two more could be greenlighted later this year. What is more, Ukraine’s nuclear sector survives in part thanks to European support. The EU needs to stop supporting Kiev’s risky nuclear energy programme.

With an ownership structure heavily influenced by Azerbaijan, the European Commission’s flagship energy project may end up being a costly piece of infrastructure that does not increase Europe’s energy security but offers a tool for political leverage to the authoritarian Aliyev regime.

In spite of an updated construction contract for a new unit at the Tuzla coal-fired power plant, the project's economic feasibility remains a puzzle with missing pieces.