The exceptional start of 2021 for renewable energy continues into February as well, said Slovenian state-owned energy company HSE. Hydropower plants of the HSE Group, which associates the companies Dravske Elektrarne Maribor (DEM), Soške Elektrarne Nova Gorica (SENG) and a 49 % stake in Hidroelektrarne na Spodnji Savi (HESS), produced by 14 February 2021 a total of 540 GWh of electricity, exceeding the plan for February by 51 % as early as mid-month.
Head of Operations planning and management at HSE Group Jernej Brglez said that 2021 has been one of the wettest years hydrology-wise. If the trend continues, production from hydropower plants will exceed 650 GWh, which means that the plan for the first two months will be exceeded by at least 39 %.
In the last five years, the most favorable year hydrology-wise was 2016, when hydropower plant production reached 424 GWh at the end of February, and in that year 65 % of the production planned for this year was realized. HSE Group is the largest producer of green electricity in Slovenia. In 2020, as much as 87 % of its entire electricity production came from renewable sources.
In terms of individual companies, by mid-February the highest production had been attained by SENG, with the plan for the period being exceeded by 100 %. DEM exceeded the plan for that period by 48 %, and HESS by 50 %. According to Brglez, this record production is attributable to the favorable hydrological conditions, a highly accessible production infrastructure and beneficial market conditions.
