Speaking at the energy conference in Belgrade, Director of Strategy at state-owned power utility EPS Aleksandar Jakovljevic said that the company sees the transition to RES as realistic and sustainable, and this will reflect in the plans and transformation of the production portfolio, however, coal will remain as the pillar of its electricity generation.
Jakovljevic said that around 70 % of electricity generation is coal-based, which cannot be replaced quickly and in a realistic fashion. He added that thermal power plants, synchronized with the environmental protection measures, will be the basis for supply security, for the integration of RES, which is a precondition for successful development of projects, something that investors are thinking about.
In addition to the existing hydro power plants, EPS is developing the system on Velika Morava and Ibar rivers, but is also active in the region. A company in charge of projects on the upper course of the Drina River has been established in the Republic of Srpska (RS), while the project documentation for HPP Komarnica is developed in cooperation with Montenegrin power utility EPCG.
He reminded that EPS is developing the wind farm in Kostolac and the Petka solar power plant at the mining landfills, as well as solar power plant near Kostolac, which will be located at an ash dump, adding that the company is currently considering investments in biomass. Gas-fired electricity generation should also be taken in consideration, although it increases dependence on imports.
EPS, as a guaranteed supplier, has the obligation to balance, and bear the costs of balancing, for all RES electricity producers. According to Jakovljevic, the process of reducing coal-based capacities in the future may lead to a lack of balancing capacity. In its ten-year development plan, electricity transmission system operator EMS mentions 3,000 MW of newly installed capacities until 2030, and the proposal of the integrated national energy climate plan mentions 6,000 MW of wind and 4,000 MW of solar as the upper limit.
