Dangerous lignite: Bosnia and Herzegovina has problems with its energy transition

In Kakanj, an concern municipality successful the bosom of Bosnia and Herzegovina, everything revolves astir lignite. Thousands of jobs beryllium connected it.

Here prevarication 440 cardinal tonnes of coal, 1 of the largest deposits successful Europe. I get peculiar authorisation to participate the immense open-cast pit.

Coal was already being mined successful Kakanj during the clip of the Austrian emperor. Before World War I, immoderate 5 1000 miners toiled here. Today, determination are inactive 1200.

One of them is Omer Hrustić: “I was virtually a kid erstwhile my uncle brought maine to the enactment site. Yeah, it’s 3 generations, literally. My granddad, my grandfather, my uncle… each antheral fig successful my household is tied to mining. Mining is simply a large portion of my life.”

Production successful Kakanj is present acceptable to emergence from 700.000 tonnes past twelvemonth to 800.000 tonnes successful 2026. This is contempt the information that burning lignite releases highly precocious levels of pollutants. And determination are monolithic emissions of CO2 and SO2.

Fossil fuels are the main origin of planetary warming and the clime crisis. Mining technologist Omer Hrustić knows this too: "As a society, we request to look for amended ways to proviso energy. When the clip comes, we request to beryllium prepared. But we are presently babelike connected coal. And connected our work, our hard work."

There are 7 state-owned ember mines successful the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina, 1 of the 2 entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina (the different being Republika Srpska with 2 large ember mines). Their upland of indebtedness is totalling astir 1 100 cardinal euros.

Financial catastrophe positive biology problems: Why support digging alternatively of phasing retired coal? Iso Delibašić is the manager of the Kakanj ember mine: "Bosnia and Herzegovina needs energy. The aboriginal of the ember excavation indispensable not beryllium called into question."

“Let’s bash immoderate maths”, I inquire Delibašić, “take the ember you inactive person successful the crushed today, however galore years could it last?” The ember excavation manager estimates, that the geological reserves of the Kakanj ember mines could past “for the adjacent 40-50 years”.

Euronews: “In 2050, volition this excavation inactive beryllium moving oregon not?”

Delibašić: “We tin accidental that Bosnia and Herzegovina inactive lacks a batch of energy. That’s wherefore our aboriginal should not beryllium jeopardised. Let’s instrumentality into information our geological ember reserves.”

Euronews: “Do you consciousness atrocious astir helping to termination satellite earth?”

Delibašić: “We nutrient coal. This ember is utilized by idiosyncratic else. Do I consciousness atrocious astir doing my job? Of people not!”

Let’s determination on. The chimney of the Kakanj coal-fired powerfulness works is arsenic gangly arsenic the Eiffel Tower and emits immense amounts of pollutants and CO2. How does Bosnia and Herzegovina program to go climate-neutral by 2050?

Bosnia and Herzegovina besides committed to this extremity astatine the Western Balkans acme successful Sofia. The state is simply a subordinate of the Energy Community, an planetary organisation successful which the European Union and campaigner countries make rules for the vigor market.

But Bosnia and Herzegovina is not complying. Some of the powerfulness works units day backmost to the 1970s. Their remaining operating hours agreed person agelong since been exceeded.

There is simply a deficiency of modern filters. Yet, galore of these precise aged reactors are inactive successful operation. Why weren’t these units unopen down agelong ago?

Bosnia and Herzegovina's outdated coal-fired powerfulness plants emit implicit 200,000 tonnes of sulphur dioxide per year, eleven times much than permitted, reports Bankwatch, a web of determination non-governmental organisations.

The European Commission's 2025 Country Report besides powerfully criticises Bosnia and Herzegovina's vigor policy. And the European Energy Community has initiated infringement proceedings.

In Kakanj, portion 7 is 1 of the large troublemakers. Power works manager Adem Lujnović blames the section upwind conditions for precocious contamination levels: “When inversion upwind conditions occur, we acquisition precocious levels of aerial pollution. It happens successful the wintertime oregon summer, erstwhile we person unchangeable upwind conditions and precocious aerial pressure.”

Years were wasted. Reforms were postponed. Laws were delayed. I inquire the powerfulness works manager wherefore the aged units weren't unopen down agelong ago. “We had already considered switching to earthy state successful 2010”, helium says, "but it wasn't cost-effective, ember was cheaper."

Locals are paying a precocious terms for this decision: with their health. Edina Dogdibegović lives connected the outskirts of Kakanj. "The powerfulness works burns 2 cardinal tonnes of ember a year," she says.

Air contamination alerts are issued successful some summertime and winter: "In January we had an aerial prime scale of 9-9-5, precise dangerous! 2000 micrograms of sulphur dioxide per cubic metre! Well supra the limit!"

There are besides emissions from a cement works and residential furnaces. There seems to beryllium an summation successful cases of cancer. "In 1 retired of each 2 households, idiosyncratic has been diagnosed with cancer," reports Edina, “the authorities does not support the radical here.”

Many radical successful Bosnia-Herzegovina turn their ain vegetables. This is besides the lawsuit successful Kakanj. However, the greens successful the plot are poisonous. “Some investigation has shown an highly precocious attraction of arsenic, cadmium and lead”, says Edina Dogdibegović, “and I conscionable suggest to the radical present not to usage vegetables from here.”

The residents are acrophobic of poisonous vegetables, deadly aerial and cancer. But is each of this true? At the infirmary successful Kakanj, I conscionable an adept connected respiratory diseases. Senka Balorda is 1 of the astir renowned doctors successful Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“Yes, we bash person a occupation successful Kakanj”, Senka Balorda confirms. “I deliberation that arsenic reported for 2025, for the 35.000 citizens of Kakanj, we person 223 antithetic crab patients. That’s truly huge.”

Euronews: “What is the transportation betwixt ember and the diseases?”

Senka Balorda: “The particle that we enactment successful goes done the trachea, the large bronchus to tiny bronchus, and astatine the extremity to the small, farthest paths of the smallest alveoli successful the lungs.”

Euronews: “Can aerial contamination kill?”

Balorda: “Of course, due to the fact that successful this play ample numbers of lung cancers person been discovered. I person sent 7 of my patients to Tešanj hospital. All those 7 patients person died. The aerial contamination is simply a nonstop origin of lung cancer.”

European Environment Agency and World Bank warn: High levels of aerial contamination successful Bosnia and Herzegovina is liable for implicit 3,000 premature deaths each year. When adjusted for colonisation size, this is simply a European record.

All implicit the country, radical vigor their homes and navigator with ember oregon wood. The precocious levels of particulate substance contamination are truthful astatine slightest partially self-inflicted.

In the mining municipality of Kakanj, each 2nd backstage household uses coal. Every 3rd household burns wood and the remainder usage pellets.

Right adjacent to the mosque is simply a modern measuring station. The Kemal Kapetanović Institute has installed 9 fixed aerial monitoring points passim the Zenica-Doboj Canton, to which Kakanj belongs – positive 2 mobile stations.

Halim Prcanović knows each astir soiled air. The idiosyncratic precocious attended an planetary league successful London. Research findings beryllium that smog kills. Prcanović is concerned: “During past twelvemonth and besides this year, Kakanj has had a precise precocious attraction of sulphur dioxide and particulate substance PM10.”

I americium authorized to person a look connected the measuring filters, they are black: toxic dust. With a indebtedness from the World Bank, the authorities are promoting the transition: households are to halt utilizing coal, Prcanović insists.

But what astir the powerfulness plant? Halim Prcanović: “The thermal powerfulness works has a precise precocious chimney which is 300 meters gangly and it pollutes a precise large area.”

He shows maine his machine screen: “And you spot these peaks of sulphur dioxide successful Kakanj? They are mostly from the thermal powerfulness plant’s chimney. That is the lone root that tin nutrient this precocious peak. It tin beryllium arsenic precocious arsenic 3000 micrograms per cubic meter. The yearly bounds is 50 micrograms. So we are ever supra the yearly bounds successful Kakanj.”

Prcanović is horrified, facts and figures are bad: “I cognize that they are emitting astir 70.000 tonnes of sulphur dioxide per year. They request to little these emissions to astir 1.500 tonnes SO2 per year. So, you spot however acold it is supra the limit!”

What does the politician of Kakanj city, Mirnes Bajtarević, deliberation astir each this? Let’s person a talk.

Euronews: “What is your recommendation? Should the ember powerfulness works adjacent down oregon not?”

Mirnes Bajtarević: “If you inquire maine whether I americium presently successful favour of closing, unluckily I’m acrophobic I cannot accidental yes, arsenic beingness successful this municipality depends connected these concern centres.”

Euronews: “I recognize that you support ember for historic, societal and fiscal reasons. Are you liable for the suffering of radical who are dying from ember and pollution?”

Mirnes Bajtarević: “I don’t spot my work successful this way. I americium successful favour of the thought that we should support surviving and moving here.”

Euronews: “And what astir cleanable air?”

Mirnes Bajtarević: “Clean aerial is precise overmuch my concern. It is our extremity to exert unit connected higher authorities, truthful to speak, to guarantee that they instrumentality each measures prescribed successful the biology permits. And I expect astute plans to beryllium developed truthful that radical who worked for years successful these concern centres don’t conscionable go a fig successful the unemployment offices.”

By the extremity of the past year, the aerial prime implicit Kakanj was truthful atrocious that the politician called for an exigency meeting. Several powerfulness works units were temporarily unopen down. A desulphurisation works is being built successful Kakanj. It is scheduled to spell into cognition astatine the extremity of 2027.

"The desulphurisation works allows america to cleanable 1.5 cardinal cubic metres of gases," explains Kakanj powerfulness works manager Adem Lujnović.

"We presently person sulphur dioxide concentrations of 8,000 milligrams per cubic metre", says Lujnović. "After desulphurisation, it volition lone beryllium 150 milligrams. We could conscionable the European Union's emanation limits by 2028."

Euronews: “When volition the dirtiest powerfulness works units beryllium unopen down?”

Adem Lujnović: "Block 5 volition beryllium decommissioned successful 2027, Block 6 successful 2035. Block 7 volition tally until 2045 oregon 2050, depending connected the conditions."

Euronews: “So wherever bash energy and vigor travel from, successful the adjacent future?”

Lujnović: "We are gathering a gas-fired powerfulness works here. One day, this could besides beryllium powered by hydrogen.”

Euronews: “Phasing retired coal, erstwhile it volition beryllium done?”

Lujnović: "Decarbonisation and the phase-out of ember should beryllium completed by 2050."

Euronews: “Your imaginativeness of the future?”

Lujnović: "We request a paradigm shift; determination needs to beryllium a alteration successful the mode of thinking, that's the key."

Thick smog besides hangs implicit the superior of Sarajevo. I person an interrogation assignment with Sanel Buljubašić, the apical decision-maker astatine Elektroprivreda BiH, the country’s largest energy supplier.

Around 60% of energy is generated from ember combustion. The state-owned institution wants to restructure its vigor mix… but determination are financing problems.

Euronews: “Pollution levels are truly precocious successful Bosnia and Herzegovina and you are not complying with the European Union’s Large Combusion Plant Directive. Why are you not complying with your ineligible obligations?”

Sanel Buljubašić (General Director of Elektroprivreda BiH): “I deliberation that we are precise precocious with legislation, authorities that provides for a conscionable transition. Especially successful the discourse of gathering caller facilitiesor much precicely, providing funds to physique caller vigor facilities.”

Euronews: “What is your proposal?”

Sanel Buljubašić: “What we suggest is to follow a peculiar instrumentality that would supply for the faster operation of caller accumulation facilities from renewable sources.”

Euronews: “What is your wish-list for politicians and decision-makers, beryllium it successful Sarajevo oregon successful Brussels?”

Sanel Buljubašić: “When we speech astir a connection to the European Union, we expect entree to EU funds and to person adjacent treatment, likewise to citizens of the EU who person been done this process of conscionable transition.”

Late with legislation? Ok, let’s person a chat with Vedran Lakić the vigor curate of the BiH determination government. Ready for immoderate pugnacious speech with hard questions? “I americium ready”, the curate says and invites maine in.

Euronews: “Well, Bosnia and Herzegovina wants to go a subordinate of the European Union and the EU published a 2025 state study which is rather straightforward, saying that nary advancement has been made regarding compliant authorities connected energy proviso information and the country’s redirection from ember to renewables. So, wherefore has nary advancement been made?”

Vedran Lakić: “We person respective laws that request to beryllium adopted by the State Parliament and that’s fig one. It’s the State Electricity Law. Our vigor assemblage has been sleepwalking for the past 10 oregon 15 years and we request to marque immoderate changes present quickly. We are not successful a bully shape. But the European Union is pushing america to decorativeness those things.”

Euronews: “Regarding the EU’s 2025 state study connected Bosnia-Herzegovina, it is written that determination is an urgent request to instrumentality a CO2 trading strategy and it’s not yet successful place. Why?”

Vedran Lakić: “Yes, yes, you are perfectly close and I americium hoping that the State Parliament volition decorativeness this process arsenic soon arsenic possible.”

And past determination is the contented of CBAM, the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. To recognize this, we request to instrumentality a measurement back. The European Union has acceptable a people of achieving clime neutrality by 2050. This people is binding connected each EU subordinate states, and aligning with EU clime authorities is simply a request for immoderate state wishing to articulation the EU. The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) is the EU’s argumentation instrumentality to promote cleaner concern accumulation extracurricular the EU, by taxing imports similar steel, cement, and aluminium, based connected their embedded emissions.

Under CBAM, which entered into unit connected 1 January 2026, EU importers are legally liable for reporting the embedded emissions of imported products, and are required to acquisition CBAM certificates reflecting the c outgo based connected the EU Emissions Trading Scheme price, and taxable yearly declarations to EU authorities.

Bosnia and Herzegovina exports to the EU from a fig of high-carbon sectors, including accumulation of iron, alloy and aluminium arsenic good arsenic energy generation. “No exceptions are foreseen for Bosnia and Herzegovina from the obligations of CBAM”, says Ferdinand Koenig, spokesperson for the EU delegation successful Sarajevo.

When exporters are incapable to supply close and verified emissions data, they hazard higher costs owed to ineligible fees, and penalties incurred from nonaccomplishment to pay, commercialized delays, and could suffer competitiveness compared to competitors from countries with robust reporting systems successful place. Current estimates suggest that high-carbon sectors correspond astir 15% of BiH’s exports to the EU. “The aboriginal interaction of CBAM volition beryllium connected the c strength of concern and energy accumulation and connected BiH’s quality to study reliable emissions information successful enactment with CBAM requirements”, Koenig points out.

Furthermore, Bosnia-Herzegovina has failed successful caller years to found a ineligible model for the instauration of an EU-compatible Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). “The EU Emissions Trading Scheme is an work for each countries wishing to articulation the EU”, emphasises Koenig. The instauration of an Emissions Trading Scheme volition bounds pollution, reward greenish solutions, and chopped emissions affordably successful Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Ferdinand Koenig: “The EU urges the applicable authorities successful Bosnia and Herzegovina to marque advancement successful this area. Currently, the state relies heavy connected coal. Insufficient advancement connected clime policies mean the state is unprepared for the obligations of EU membership, and moreover generates risks of commercialized penalties and higher costs for businesses.”

As regards the modulation distant from coal, the EU’s Just Transition argumentation model aims to guarantee a just modulation to a climate-neutral system by 2050. “Within this context, EU funds person been made disposable to enactment a just decarbonisation process successful Bosnia and Herzegovina”, says Koenig, “for illustration done a caller task worthy €5 cardinal to facilitate conscionable modulation successful ember babelike regions successful the Western Balkans.”

Overall, the EU provides sizeable enactment for Bosnia and Herzegovina’s modulation to cleanable energy. The spokesperson for the EU delegation successful Sarajevo is acquainted with the figures: “Bosnia and Herzegovina has been allocated implicit €335 cardinal successful grants and favourable loans to accelerate its greenish modulation by the EU, International Financial Institutions and EU Member States."

Projects see the modernisation of the Čapljina hydropower works (€18M), gathering 2 large upwind farms successful Poklečani (132 MW, €200M) and Vlašić Travnik (50 MW, €91.7M), boosting vigor ratio successful nationalist buildings (€6M) and multi-apartment renovations (€3M), and rolling retired large-scale nationalist assemblage upgrades done the Regional Energy Efficiency Programme (REEP+) successful Sarajevo Canton (€10M), Zenica-Doboj (€11M), Tuzla Canton (€10.7M), and Republika Srpska (€1M), portion besides receiving €4.5M for EU vigor argumentation alignment, assemblage reforms, and stakeholder engagement to fortify its clime and vigor framework.

Moreover, a important proportionality of the up to EUR 976.6 cardinal disposable nether the Growth Plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina supports this objective. “By efficaciously implementing its Growth Plan reforms, and successful peculiar connected vigor transition, emissions reduction, and organization alignment with EU clime policies, Bosnia and Herzegovina could unlock up to €100 cardinal successful EU fiscal enactment to modernise its system and accelerate its greenish transition”, says Koenig. “Currently, Bosnia and Herzegovina is yet to motorboat the implementation of its Reform Agenda, including ratification of the Loan and Facility Agreements requesting the pre-financing and the assignment of a Coordinator.”

There is nary doubt: Bosnia and Herzegovina has sizeable cleanable vigor potential, and determination would beryllium important benefits for the country’s citizens from making advancement connected the cleanable vigor transition. However, determination are doubts astir the effectiveness of the governmental decision-making processes. Historically rooted tensions betwixt the antithetic parts of the state are being exploited by determination politicians, whilst separatist tendencies successful the Republika Srpska are blocking oregon delaying legislative initiatives that are important for the state’s betterment docket and EU accession.

Our past halt is the Zenica pit, the bosom of Bosnia-Herzegovina’s mining industry, the bosom of the region’s mining history. The excavation was founded successful 1879. The miners telephone their underground tunnels “Stara Jama”, meaning “Old Shaft”. Now it is being filled in, the pit is closing down.

Zenica ember excavation manager Mirsad Šahbazović has galore years of experience, besides abroad. He worked connected projects successful Saudi-Arabia and Sudan. Today helium oversees the past days of Zenica’s Stara Jama pit.

Euronews: “How galore radical worked present before, however galore volition remain, adjacent year?”

Mirsad Šahbazović: “Ten years ago, 1000 radical worked here. Today determination are immoderate 500. Soon determination volition beryllium lone 20 left.”

Euronews: “What’s going to hap with the workers?”

Mirsad Šahbazović: “Some of our workers volition beryllium employed successful different ember mines. Some volition opt for aboriginal retirement. Some are waiting to beryllium paid disconnected and spell to different countries successful Europe.”

Euronews: “How bash you consciousness astir closing down the pit?”

Mirsad Šahbazović: “A fewer months agone was a precise affectional moment. We chopped the enactment that had been utilized to extract ember from underground for much than 100 years. This was a very, precise bittersweet moment.”

Mirsad Šahbazović proposes preserving astatine slightest immoderate parts of the ember excavation arsenic a mining museum. Does this concern hertage tract person a aboriginal arsenic a tourer attraction? Nothing has been decided yet. The occupation here, too, is financing.

Mirsad Šahbazović: “This spot is 1 of the oldest archetypal ember mines constructed successful the Austro-Hungarian play successful Europe. Our thought is to support this machinery for the adjacent generations to spot what has happened here.”

Restructuring the vigor assemblage requires plans, wealth and governmental will. This is precisely what has been lacking successful caller years. A state connected a broadside track? Or rolling towards the European Union? Bosnia and Herzegovina indispensable take which way to take.