EPS has met the plans in 2018

1/2/2019
EPS has met the plans in 2018

(Belgrade, 2nd January 2019) “In 2018, Electric Power Industry of Serbia has met its plans and increased production, obtained the energy permit for Kostolac Wind Farm and there is a plan for 2019 to increase total production of electricity in Serbia by four percent, to 40 billion kWh”, said Mr. Aleksandar Antić, the Minister of Mining and Energy, who visited EPS employees together with Mr. Milorad Grčić, PE EPS Acting Director.

At EPS hopper station in Vreoci, from which coal from Kolubara MB is delivered by railway to Thermal Power Plant Nikola Tesla, Mr. Antic thanked EPS and its employees who work during holidays, 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, emphasizing that at the hopper station the second day of holiday in 2019 passed as any other ordinary working day.

- The overall energy situation in Serbia is completely stable and the supply of all key energy resources for households and economy is secure. At EPS mines, Kolubara and Kostolac, the planned coal production in 2019 is about 38 million tons, which is by 1.5 percent more than in 2018. The Government of Serbia and the Ministry of Mining and Energy will support EPS’s employees in achieving an ambitious goal of gross production of about 40 terawatt-hours of electricity in 2019. Wind capacities have become a part of electricity generation in Serbia, but still the key to the stability of the power system lies in the generation of EPS’s thermal sector - stated the Minister and wished all employees a happy New Year.

Mr. Antić said that one of the key things in 2019 would be the beginning of activities on the desulphurization project in TENT B, but the project for the construction of a new thermal power plant Kolubara B and the assessment of its feasibility were also important, and he said that the new Unit B3 in Kostolac should be completed by the end of 2020.

- The great news for EPS is that on the last day of previous year, an energy permit was obtained for the construction of wind farm in Kostolac. We are very pleased that 2018 ended like this and we expect that the construction of that wind farm will start in the third quarter of 2019. EPS met the plans, we managed to produce enough coal, and we generated electricity by 1.2 percent more than in 2017. - said Mr. Grčić and wished a happy New Year to all EPS employees and wished health and happiness to them and their families.

Mr. Miodrag Ranković, the union president at Kolubara MB, said that thanks to the coal loaded at the hopper station in Vreoci Serbia "shines" 365 days a year, and added that miners do their job responsibly and that Serbia would continue to "shine" as long as miners dig coal.

Mr. Milan Đorđević, the president of EPS trade union, Mr. Bojan Stević, State Secretary at the Ministry of Public Administration and Local Self-Government and the representatives of EPS management also attended the visit at the hopper station in Vreoci.

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