As much as 32 new electronic services on the eAdministration portal have become available to business community interested in investing in renewable energy sources. These include 27 services under the portfolio of the Ministry of Mining and Energy and 5 services under the portfolio of the Ministry of Environmental Protection.
These new electronic services, along with the already existing 99 available ones for businesses, have been digitalized under the coordination of the Public Policy Secretariat through the e-Paper Programne. This represents great improvement in the accessibility of public administration through electronic communication and the acquisition of permits and consents in a simple and fast manner.
“In order to improve the business environment, achieve savings for the businesses and increase their competitiveness, the Public Policy Secretariat coordinated digitalisation and simplification for 131 public administration services in cooperation with the Office for Information Technologies and e-Government and together with 8 public administration bodies. This significantly reduced the administrative burden by simplifying services through the e-PAPER Programme. Annual savings of 33 million euros have been achieved, and these funds can now be directed to development and employment,” said the Director of the Public Policy Secretariat, Bojana Tošić.
With the financial support of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) based on the input received from investors in renewable energy sources through the project “Digitalization of administrative procedures to stimulate investments in renewable energy sources”, the Public Policy Secretariat with the relevant ministries identified and coordinated the digitalization of administrative procedures that primarily relate to the procedures for issuing and extending energy permits in the field of oil, gas and power engineering, acquiring the status of a Privileged Power Producer, procedures related to the preparation of an environmental impact assessment study and other related procedures.
At the official marking of the completion of the project, the President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Odile Renaud-Basso said: “I am glad to be able to confirm the successful completion of the digitalization of 32 administrative procedures, which was implemented with the technical support of the EBRD.“ This is an important initiative for investors in renewable energy sources as it contributes to speeding up procedures and reducing costs, increasing transparency, i.e. improving the business environment and strengthening investor confidence, which is key to sustainable development and green transition of Serbia.”
The main goal of the project was to improve the business environment for business entities that operate within the framework of the Green Agenda and create quality, transparent and user-oriented services in the sector of renewable energy sources with the effect of reducing administrative costs for the businesses and improving dialogue between investors in renewable energy sources and public authorities. Digital transformation in the provision of services in this area saves both time and money to businesses and increases the efficiency of public administration.
“By conducting market premium auctions for RES we showed we can conduct completely digitalized complex procedures and transparently, but it is equally important for us to also apply that to other procedures important for companies and investors,” Digitization of 27 services under the portfolio of the Ministry of Mining and Energy will enable rapid communication between authorities and clients will not have to wait for the delivery of letters and submissions as it will be done automatically. This reform will improve business environment in the energy sector, especially in the area of renewable energy sources, with shorter procedures and lower costs, which is significant for an even more dynamic process of transition to clean energy sources in our country,” said the Minister of Mining and Energy, Dubravka Đedović Handanović.
Considering the importance of digitalization, as well as the imperative to switch to low-carbon energy sources, the digitalization of these procedures brings significant benefits for the green investment climate and the overall business environment.
“The services falling under the portfolio of my department refer to the procedures of environmental impact assessment. By digitalizing procedures in this area, we stimulate investments in renewable energy sources, which is in line with the Government of Serbia objective to increase the use of green energy from renewable sources. These investments are an important link in the green transformation and sustainable development of Serbia, which we will take care of in the future.” said the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Environmental Protection, Irena Vujović.
These procedures are now faster and at a lower cost, and Decisions are issued in a few simple steps:
- The user on the eUprava Portal fills out an electronic request, attaches documentation and makes an electronic payment if the service requires payment of fees;
- The system automatically accesses electronic registers and obtains ex officio data that are necessary in the decision-making process;
- The applicant regularly receives notifications about possible amendments to the documentation and status changes of its case;
- Ultimately, the license is submitted electronically to the applicant’s eInbox on the eUprava Portal and is permanently available to the user and competent authorities for all further procedures.
The reform continues towards further optimization and simplification of administrative procedures with a special focus on their digitalisation, the end result of which is the reduction of time and costs for end users, i.e. both the businesses and citizens.
The list of digitalised procedures of the Ministry of Mining and Energy can be viewed here.
The list of digitalised procedures of the Ministry of Environmental Protection can be viewed here.