Skopje, 14 September 2021 (MIA) – Minister of Environment and Physical Planning Naser Nuredini opened Tuesday the second day of the Macedonian Energy Forum 2021: Mapping the Energy Future, focusing on the connection between environment, resilience to climate change and meeting of Goal 7 of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – Affordable and Clean Energy. Minister Nuredini said investments in mitigation and resilience is a long-term investment that will better prepare the country for future events, the Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning said in a press release. Nuredini also highlighted the ambitious national contribution to the Paris Agreement – reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 52 percent or net emissions by 85 percent by 2030 in relation to 1990 – noting that a long-term strategy on climate action has been recently adopted and the Law on Climate Action is to be passed by the end of the year. “It sounds like a very ambitious plan for a country in transition, but we are committed to increasing the share of energy produced from renewable sources by investing in solar energy, wind energy and hydro energy. Investments in gas pipelines and gas distribution infrastructure will help the transition from coal-generated energy. Our goal is to shut down the largest energy producer REK Bitola by 2030,” said Nuredini. He added that climate change is a global, not local issue, and therefore these changes should be supported, both financially and technically, reads the press release.