As the EU accelerates the green transition, Serbia’s energy-intensive industry is facing increasing environmental requirements, rising costs, and regulatory uncertainty. The Association of Serbian Energy-Intensive Industry (ASEII) today brings together key companies from the steel, cement, and fertilizer sectors to ensure their voice is clearly represented in the development of energy and climate policies. We spoke with Stanislava Simić, Director of ASEII, about the challenges, opportunities, and priorities ahead.
Q: To begin with, could you introduce the Association of Serbian Energy-Intensive Industry—what sectors does it represent, what are your key objectives, and what role do you play in supporting this part of the economy?
A: The Association of Serbian Energy-Intensive Industry was established as a joint platform of five leading industrial companies from the steel, cement, and fertilizer sectors, with the aim of uniting the voice of industries that form the backbone of Serbia’s real economy. The founding members of the Association are Metalfer Steel Mill, Elixir Group, Holcim Serbia, Moravacem, and Titan Cementara Kosjerić.
The Association was formed to ensure the active participation of energy-intensive industry in shaping national and European energy and climate policies, particularly in the context of decarbonization and the transition toward climate neutrality. ASEII’s mission is to advocate for a fair, predictable, and competitive regulatory framework that enables long-term investment, technological innovation, and industrial resilience, while simultaneously meeting climate objectives.
Q: When it comes to current challenges, how would you describe the position of the energy-intensive industry in Serbia in the context of stricter environmental criteria and increasingly demanding EU regulations?
A: The pace set by the European Union is certainly ambitious and particularly challenging for Serbia, given that we are starting the energy and environmental transition from different baseline conditions. While companies within the EU have access to dedicated funds, subsidies, and well-developed infrastructure to support the energy and environmental transition, the domestic industry is gradually aligning with similar standards, but with a more limited range of available support instruments.
Energy pricing remains one of the key factors of competitiveness, especially in terms of cost predictability and long-term planning. An additional challenge lies in waste management, where infrastructure capacities and administrative procedures are still under development, affecting operational flexibility.
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For this reason, it is important that Serbia’s energy and industrial policies evolve in parallel with the regulatory alignment process, and that industry receives ongoing support through investment mechanisms, infrastructure projects, and realistic transition timelines. Within such a framework, it is possible to preserve the industrial base while strengthening competitiveness and meeting increasingly stringent environmental requirements through a partnership approach involving the state, industry, and international stakeholders.
Q: CBAM is already affecting domestic companies—how is this impact currently manifesting, and what are the main obstacles your members are facing?
A: CBAM is already having a tangible impact on domestic companies, even though it remains in an early phase of implementation. The impact is primarily reflected in increased business uncertainty, as the legal framework has been adopted, but the implementing by-laws defining specific rules and procedures are still pending. At this stage, companies do not have full clarity on the obligations they will face, which complicates production, procurement, and export planning, and, in certain cases, material and raw material flows have slowed.
In a broader context, major economies such as the United States, the EU, and other global actors are implementing strong industrial protection measures alongside their climate policies. In this regard, the domestic industry expects that Serbia, in line with its capacities and stage of European integration, will also provide support to companies facing new regulatory requirements.
Q: How can the domestic industry remain competitive and respond to the obligations introduced by CBAM, particularly in comparison with companies from the EU?
A: Preserving the competitiveness of the domestic industry under the conditions introduced by CBAM requires accelerated, yet sustainable decarbonization, supported by appropriate financial and regulatory mechanisms. A particularly important role in this process is played by the increased use of secondary raw materials and alternative fuels, which are already an integral part of production processes within our member companies, but whose full potential has not yet been realized. Greater utilization of secondary raw materials, alternative fuels, and more efficient waste flows—alongside further alignment of waste treatment and transit regulations with EU rules—would enable industry to simultaneously reduce emissions and optimize production costs.
Electricity generated from renewable sources represents another key pillar of the transition. A stable regulatory framework increased installed capacity, and the possibility of concluding long-term Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) would provide companies with the certainty needed for investment planning and carbon footprint reduction.
With a predictable regulatory environment, accessible investment mechanisms, and ongoing dialogue among all stakeholders, the industry would be able to adapt to CBAM requirements, maintain competitiveness, and become an active participant in the European green transition.
Interview by Milena Maglovski
The interview was published in Energy portal Magazine DIGITALIZATION
