The Slovenian government was heavily criticised by Slovenian civil society this week, with groups including Friends of the Earth Slovenia (Focus), Umanotera and Greenpeace calling for more investment in renewable energy.
Draft plans for the future of Slovenia’s energy were released by the government’s ministry of infrastructure. The controversial plans show heavy reliance on fossil fuels, and would allow Slovenia’s biggest energy provider, Termoelektrarna Šoštanj, to continue running coal-fired power plants until 2054.
If Europe is to meet the climate goals set out in the Paris Agreement, all coal-fired power plants in Europe must be phased out by 2030.
Tomislav Tkalec from Friends of the Earth Slovenia explained: “The government’s plans set out a totally insufficient goal of 27% for the share of renewable energy in the country by 2030. We are already set for 25% by 2020. Slovenia is wasting a decade to preserve the status quo in the energy sector – dirty fossil fuels. We need to go fossil free, there should be no future for coal in our country.”
Friends of the Earth Slovenia and allies demand that the Slovenian government phase out coal and nuclear in the country, and develop truly sustainable renewable energy sources in line with the Paris agreement. This includes introducing energy efficiency measures and reducing energy use as a priority.
