@techreport{JRC126154, number = {KJ-NA-30837-EN-N (online),KJ-NA-30837-EN-C (print)}, address = {Luxembourg (Luxembourg)}, issn = {1831-9424 (online),1018-5593 (print)}, year = {2021}, author = {Ruiz Castello P and Medarac H and Somers J and Mandras G}, isbn = {978-92-76-41929-7 (online),978-92-76-41930-3 (print)}, publisher = {Publications Office of the European Union}, abstract = {The purpose of this report is to investigate the future of solid fossil fuels in the Western Balkans and Ukraine and the impact of the energy transition on the number of jobs related to these activities. This research covers the use of solid fossil fuel (namely coal, peat and oil shale) in the Western Balkans and Ukraine in 2018, at NUTS-2-equivalent level. The analysis covers the mining and related power production sectors, evaluating their corresponding direct and indirect employment. It further evaluates the potential impact on the identified employment due to existing decarbonisation strategies. On the top of mining and power sectors, distribution of carbon intensive industries across the regional scope is also covered. Coal is by far the most used fossil fuel in the Western Balkans and Ukraine, followed by peat, which is used marginally in Ukraine. Shale oil is not used at all. There were 65 coal mines in the area in 2018, producing 93 Mt of hard coal and lignite ? around 20% of the coal produced in the European Union. Ukraine hosts by far the biggest mining industry in terms of employment, with 47 mines and more than 55 000 jobs, but Serbia produces almost 50% more coal in just two large open-pit mines (employing 12 000 workers). The Ukrainian power sector consists of 38 coal power plants, adding up to a capacity of 26 GW. Serbia counts 6 plants totalling 4.3 GW, Bosnia and Herzegovina reaches 2 GW with 5 plants, and in Kosovo* and North Macedonia, 2 plants add 1.2 GW and 0.8 GW respectively. There is one 0.2 GW coal power plant in Montenegro. Kosovo* has the power generation with the highest dependence on coal (95%), followed by Serbia (67%), Bosnia and Herzegovina (65%), North Macedonia (51%), Montenegro (41%) and Ukraine (30%). Albania, relying on hydropower supplemented by imports for its electricity supply, does not use coal or peat for power generation. There is a total of 138 000 jobs associated with the sectors analysed (almost 90 000 jobs in mining and close to 49 000 jobs in coal-based power plants). If the scenarios we considered in the corresponding energy strategies were to be realised by 2030, between 29 000 and 64 000 jobs would be at risk in coal mines and power plants in the Western Balkans and Ukraine. Seen as a proportion of the total workforce, these losses would range from 0.4% in Montenegro to 1.4% in Kosovo, with Ukraine (0.5%), North Macedonia (0.5%), Serbia (0.6%) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (1.3%) in between. For purposes of comparison, the EU?s largest coal sector, in Poland, constitutes 0.7% of its national labour force. }, title = {Recent trends in coal and peat regions in the Western Balkans and Ukraine}, type = {Scientific analysis or review, Anticipation and foresight, Country report}, url = {}, doi = {10.2760/81752 (online),10.2760/238209 (print)} }