The CBAM Q1/2026 report assesses how the Energy Community supports the integration of its Contracting Parties with EU energy markets while advancing decarbonisation, focusing on the six Western Balkans Contracting Parties (WB6) and their neighbouring EU Member States. Ukraine and Moldova—also Contracting Parties—are not included due to limited data availability.

The analysis covers key electricity market indicators, including generation trends (notably hydro and coal), day-ahead prices, cross-border spreads, price correlations, and electricity flows. It examines early effects of the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), in force since January 2026, on cross-border electricity trade and market integration.

While CBAM is not directly applied in Contracting Parties, its introduction may still have indirect impacts through cross-border price formation, trade flows, and investment signals in neighbouring systems. Designed to ensure a level playing field via carbon cost alignment with EU producers, CBAM may nevertheless alter trade dynamics and slow integration. It may also create unintended effects, including reduced incentives for renewable energy investment. Given the short observation period (Q1 2026), findings are preliminary and reflect emerging market patterns.

Being a community under the rule of law, it is through the harmonization of laws that the Energy Community aims to achieve its goals and to integrate the markets of the Contracting Parties with each other and that of the European Union. Pursuant to Article 67 of the Treaty the Secretariat is to monitor  the implementation and prepare an annual report on its findings.

The Implementation Report is every year the focal product of the Energy Community Secretariat and its monitoring role. It brings together the entire Energy Community family: every single member of the Secretariat including the ECRB Unit, all Permanent High Level Group members and many other officials in our Contracting Parties.
The Implementation Report evolves every year. Not only because of the developments in the Contracting Parties but also because of the widened scope of the Energy Community acquis and newly added content. Also the quintessence of the Report has moved from beyond mere transposition towards assessing implementation in real terms.

Key focus areas include the transposition of the Energy Integration Package (EIP), progress in decarbonisation and carbon-pricing readiness, and—new in 2025 report—the integration of energy poverty as a dedicated feature.

 Developed with The Nature Conservancy (TNC), these RES reports support accelerated renewable energy deployment in the Energy Community and the implementation of the revised Renewable Energy Directive (RED).

The Operational Blueprint for Renewable Acceleration Areas provides the spatial planning layer, setting out a step-by-step methodology for identifying priority zones for wind and solar development with low environmental and social conflict, based on TNC’s smart siting approach.

Building on this foundation, the Protocol establishes the institutional and procedural framework for permitting reform, introducing one-stop-shop mechanisms, clear administrative responsibilities, binding timelines, and coordinated workflows to ensure efficient and predictable decision-making.

Together, they form a sequenced and complementary framework linking spatial planning with streamlined permitting procedures to accelerate renewables, improve investment certainty, and support the energy transition. They are implemented under the umbrella of the Secretariat's Centre for Renewable Energy Acceleration, established in 2025 to translate policy reforms into practice through technical assistance, planning support, capacity building, and regional coordination.

This set of Contracting Party-specific factsheets tracks and compares the implementation of energy poverty legislation, policies, and measures across the Energy Community. Published in October 2024, each factsheet provides structured insights into legal definitions, institutional frameworks, policy tools, and data availability, offering a snapshot of national efforts to address energy poverty. The purpose is to monitor energy poverty definitions, legal frameworks, and databases; assess the implementation of short- and long-term measures in line with Energy Community guidelines; and summarize national policies, coverage, and spending. The factsheets also review how energy poverty is integrated into NECPs and addressed in Secretariat recommendations.