Serbia: Construction of Obrenovac-New Belgrade heat pipeline to start in autumn 2020

Deputy Mayor of Belgrade Goran Vesic said that the city has secured a 193 million euros loan for the construction of heating pipeline between Obrenovac, where Nikola Tesla thermal power plant complex (TENT) is located, and New Belgrade, thus providing better and cheaper district heating services for the capital.
Vesic said that the project aims to have hot water, which is the byproduct at the thermal power plant in Obrenovac, used for the heating of Belgrade. District heating utility Beogradske Elektrane will fund 15 % of the project, whereas the rest of the money will be provided by the Government. The expropriation of the land has already started and is expected to be completed in September, after which the construction could start. The heating pipeline is expected to be completed in two years. Annual savings for district heating services will amount to about 16 million euros.
In July, Mayor of Belgrade Zoran Radojicic said that an annex to the agreement on the construction of heating pipeline between Obrenovac and New Belgrade has been signed with the contractor Power China, which opens the possibilities for negotiations regarding the project’s financing to begin. In June 2017, Serbian Ministry of Mining and Energy, the city of Belgrade and thermal power plant Nikola Tesla complex (TENT) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the construction of Obrenovac-New Belgrade heat pipeline with Power Construction Corporation of China. Minister of Mining and Energy Aleksandar Antic said that the construction of this pipeline will save Serbia about 43 million euros per year needed for importing natural gas for Belgrade heating plant. He added that the project was economically justifiable and very important since it would provide additional security in terms of energy supply. The value of the project was initially estimated to 170 million euros.