The Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure has once again denied the usage permit for the wet electrostatic filter at the new unit B3 of TPP Kostolac, marking the fourth unsuccessful attempt by EPS to secure approval. Despite a legal requirement under the Planning and Construction Act that prohibits putting a facility into operation without a usage permit, EPS claims the filter is already in operation and supported by a favorable technical inspection report.
EPS initially applied for the permit in November 2024 and has since submitted three additional applications. After the first rejection in June, the company provided a corrected dossier within the legally mandated 30-day period. However, ministry inspectors found the revised documentation still failed to meet all formal requirements.
Inspectors identified about ten deficiencies, primarily inconsistencies between the technical inspection minutes and the main project ledger. A significant concern involved the unexplained replacement of a previously valid as-built project declaration with an incorrect execution-design statement. According to the law, a construction permit granted in 2018 does not authorize use without a separate usage permit. Legally, the wet filter should remain inactive until that permit is issued, but EPS maintains that it is operating at full capacity and complies with both national and EU environmental standards.
The wet precipitator project originated from a 2010 framework agreement with China’s CMEC, followed by the contract for constructing unit B3 signed several years later. Construction began in 2017 with an initial completion target of 2020. However, repeated delays postponed final commissioning to 2024, when unit B3 started a twelve-month trial run in the autumn and obtained its usage permit in late June.
