Municipal Energy Efficiency and Management Project, Serbia

The Municipal Energy Efficiency and Management Project (MEEMP) was launched in Serbia in 2018 to support the four Serbian pilot municipalities of Krusevac, Paracin, Uzice and Vrbas on their pioneering path towards an increasingly sustainable energy and climate policy.

The three main pillars of the project were (1) the introduction of the European Energy Award (eea) as a quality management system in the municipalities that strengthens local ownership in the energy planning process, (2) the refurbishment of 14 public schools and kindergartens – with 69% reduction of CO2 emissions per year – as exemplary models for energy-efficient buildings, and (3) the improvement of capacities at the local level through targeted capacity building of relevant skills through training and education.

By utilizing the scope of action of the four Serbian municipalities to the greatest possible extent and supporting them in implementing the jointly identified priority energy efficiency measures in accordance with the eea methodology, MEEMP helped the municipalities to achieve their legal obligations in the field of energy and climate policy. This included, among others, the introduction and long-term application of an energy management system and the improvement of the quality of monitoring and reporting on energy consumption in public buildings.

Furthermore, the project and the introduction of the “European Energy Award Serbia” process in all municipalities also improved their possibilities and motivations to go beyond the legal requirements and thus become a national role model for a responsible and progressive energy and climate municipality based on the eea. For example, in three municipalities, spatial energy plans have been developed to maximize the use of local renewable energy sources for heat generation in both public and municipal buildings. In one municipality, a communication strategy with an action plan was developed to disseminate relevant information about community involvement and citizen participation opportunities. In this way, projects were implemented whose impact extends well beyond the internal sphere of the municipal administration.

At the end of the project, the municipalities of Krusevac, Paracin and Uzice were awarded the European Energy Award Serbia for their energy policy achievements and successes. Vrbas received the nationally valid eea Serbia Pioneer Award, which recognizes municipalities “on the way” to the eea Serbia label.

The project was implemented by an international consortium of experienced Swiss and Serbian companies led by ENCO and coordinated by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs of Switzerland (SECO) and the Ministry of Mining and Energy of the Republic of Serbia. The project was implemented within the duration of 60 months and with a budget in the amount of 10.25 million euros.

“The MEEMP project was selected as the National Winner (Serbia) of the Energy Globe Award 2021 : https://energyglobe.info/national/winner/serbia»

During their study trip to Switzerland, the representatives of Serbian municipalities were inspired by other interesting implementation examples from Swiss cities: