Prishtinë, 01.04.2015 – Energy represents an important sector and a prerequisite for economic development, therefore the Government is making efforts to harmonize its actions in order to ensure the generation of sufficient energy through the development of new generation capacities, and their combination with alternative energy sources and the concept of energy efficiency, said the Minister of Economic Development, Blerand Stavileci.

Minister Stavileci made these comments today in a meeting the with the Austrian business community in Kosovo, organized by the Kosovo and Austrian Chambers of Commerce, and attended by Austrian companies working in the field of energy, respectively energy efficiency and renewable energy sources.

The Head of MED said that some days ago discussions with the World Bank and European Union were focused on the energy sector, and said discussions have resulted in the definition of all priorities for the future, which are in line with the strategic policies delineated by the Government.

Minister Stavileci said that there will soon be a new strategy covering the following ten years (2015-2024), which will determine all measures, activities and advantages in the spheres of energy, renewable energy and energy efficiency.

Minister Stavileci underlined that energy efficiency will benefit from $31 million to be used for public buildings used by the central level, adding that Kosovo will meet its 20-20-20 target, as it expects to generate up to 25% of its energy from renewable sources.

On the other hand, the President of the Kosovo Chamber of Commerce, Safet Gërxhaliu, said that KCC considers energy to represent a priority for country’s further economic development.

“We in the Kosovo Chamber of Commerce consider that economic and politic integration is impossible without energy, therefore energy is a key priority for the future. Kosovo has a number of other priorities starting with letter ‘E’ as well – Europe, economy, education, environment. In order to accomplish these priorities both internal and external partnerships should be further strengthened,” said the president of KCC.

For his part, Gerhard Schlattl, trade attaché in the Austrian Embassy in Kosovo and representative of the Federal Austrian Chamber of Commerce, said that the presence of Austrian companies in this visit will serve the exchange of experiences between Austrian and Kosovo companies and will represent an important contribution to the accomplishment of objectives set by Kosovo in terms of energy and energy efficiency.

The meeting with Austrian company representatives was held under the auspices of a fact-finding mission, which is analyzing the current state of energy efficiency in Kosovo.