The Vojvodina plain is fertile not only for wheat, corn and fruit: it is a place where smart technologies that combine energy efficiency and the transition to cleaner and renewable energy sources are thriving as well.
Branislav Milosav, manager of the Regional Centre for Energy Efficiency Banat – an institution founded in February 2021, knows a lot about the importance of energy efficiency for the whole country, as one of the most significant results of the Smart and Sustainable Energy Consumption project realised with the support of the European Union within the Interreg IPA Cross-border Cooperation Programme Romania-Serbia. This Centre is located in a new building in Zrenjanin, built on the model of the best practices in architecture aimed at preventing energy waste and the use of renewable sources. It is a small demonstration exercise on how technology and equipment can be used in energy efficiency. This is, along with the implementation of various activities based on the principles of sustainable energy transition and adaptation to climate change, the basic task of the institution. “The project was implemented in the period June 2019 – March 2021 by the city of Zrenjanin as a leading partner, then the city of Timisoara, the Regional Centre for Socio-Economic Development – Banat and the Romanian Sustainable Energy Cluster of Romania – ROSENC in order to contribute to achieving climate and energy goals of the European Union Through promotion of energy sustainability in local communities in the cross-border region,” Branislav Milosav explains. “Environmental damage is an expansive phenomenon that knows no state borders, so the partners in this project saw the need for cooperation.” For a project to be successful, it must have a good concept, but also preparation. “Our needs and ideas have been transferred to a quality project proposal, and within the IPA programme, funds have been provided for the construction and equipment, i.e. the establishment of the Regional Centre for Energy Efficiency. We hope that this Centre will, in the future, represent a real institutional support to the process of energy transition in our region.” The EU has invested more than 830 million euros in the energy sector over the past two decades. In 2022 alone, EU support to Serbia’s energy sector has been estimated at 100 million euros. Diversification of energy sources, security of supply, energy efficiency and decarbonisation of the economy, in line with the Paris Agreement, are the main goals of EU support. The support of the European Union is realized in cooperation with the Government of Serbia. The EU will continue to support Serbia in aligning with the EU acquis and creating structures that will allow for further investment in the decarbonisation of the energy sector.
