Federation of BiH suspends Issuing of Energy Permits for Small Hydropower Plants

The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) Government has determined and sent to the FBiH Parliament the Proposal of the Law on Amendments to the Law on Electricity in FBiH, and one of the novelties is the provision that a small hydropower plant (sHPP) is a hydropower facility with installed capacity up to and including 10 MW.

It is also stipulated that the issuance of energy permits for small hydropower plants is suspended. Applicants for the issuance of energy permits who have concluded concession agreements with the competent authority before the entry into force of this Law are exempted from this, provided that they are obliged to complete the application for the issuance of energy permits within three years, the FBiH Government said.

Amendments to the Law were proposed after the FBiH Government instructed the competent federal ministries, two water agencies and the FBiH Concessions Commission to prepare proposals for amendments to all regulations within their competences, in accordance with the conclusion of the House of Representatives of the FBiH Parliament construction of small hydropower plants.

As explained, the capacity of 10 MW of installed capacity is increasingly accepted in Europe as an upper limit and is supported by the European Association of Small Hydropower Plants (ESHA) and the European Commission.