Ideal locations in the Western Balkans
The results obtained in Croatia help accelerate the smart localization of renewable energy elsewhere in the Western Balkans. There are other important factors to consider beyond energy potential and investor support, says Igor Vejnović, director of strategic initiatives for Southeast Europe at TNC. TNC’s vision also takes into account “social interests like agriculture and tourism, because this energy development cannot be done in isolation,” says Vejnović.
In Serbia, TNC conducted a spatial analysis to identify 100 sites that could develop responsibly enough solar energy to power 10% of the country’s homes while reducing annual carbon emissions by a million tonnes. TNC hosts roundtable discussions with country stakeholders and gathers feedback from local authorities and experts in the fields of agriculture, tourism and conservation.
In North Macedonia, the energy transition is happening very literally at certain sites such as old coal mines. By implement renewable projects on degraded land already in use, we can avoid converting or modifying existing intact natural habitats.
In Oslomej, what was once a massive open-cast lignite mining site is becoming, panel by panel, the clean future the world desperately needs.
With our partner Eko-svest, we have developed a set of principles to extend our analysis to other types of degraded land, including brownfields and wastelands.