After conducting a public call for a strategic partner to develop self-balancing solar power plants with a one-gigawatt capacity, negotiations are now underway on the commercial terms with the selected consortium led by Hyundai Engineering, stated Minister of Energy Dubravka Đedović Handanović.
During discussions with the IMF Mission led by Donal Mckeegan as part of the third review of the standby arrangement with Serbia, it was also mentioned that intensive talks are ongoing to secure financing for the construction of the Bistrica Hydroelectric Power Plant, for which spatial planning is underway.
The Minister anticipates that the new unit TPP Kostolac B3 will be connected to the grid soon, with the first wind farm of EPS in Kostolac set to join the grid in the first half of next year.
Additionally, the construction of desulfurization facilities in TENT A, currently the largest ecological project in thermal power plants in Europe and the third largest globally, is nearing completion and will be operational in the coming weeks.
Đedović Handanović highlighted that energy security and safety are the main focus of the current review of the standby arrangement concerning the energy sector.
Regarding the energy system, she mentioned that coal reserves in the depots of TPP Nikola Tesla A and B and TE Kostolac currently total around 2.2 million tons, with hydrological reserves being significantly higher than in previous years.
Reforming Elektroprivreda Srbije was also discussed during the meeting with the IMF mission. It was noted that EPS’s financial situation normalized in 2023 following market stabilization and favorable hydrological conditions. EPS recorded a profit of 114 billion dinars last year, and efforts are underway to implement operational and financial restructuring, enhance risk management, and improve human resources management for sustainable business operations.
Furthermore, efforts are being made to develop a new methodology for calculating electricity and gas prices for the economy in collaboration with Elektroprivreda Srbije and Srbijagas to identify enhancements and enable flexibility in response to market dynamics.
