Joint Stock company Elektroprivreda
Srbije has clear plans for future development and new projects contributing
to Serbia’s energy independence, safe, reliable and high-quality supply of
electricity to citizens and the economy. Investments in new capacities are
intensively planned, especially in renewable energy sources. Energy transition
is our reality and every day we have an increasing number of new energy market participants
from the private sector. However, state companies are also increasingly
actively taking part in this process, said Dušan Živković, acting general manager
of Elektroprivreda Srbije at the ceremonial opening of the 10th
International Conference Elektrane 2023, held in Zlatibor from 8 to 10 November.
- Greater RES share has its
own balancing requirements, and we will respond to them by building the 656 MW
pumped-storage hydropower plant Bistrica. This will facilitate the balancing of
2,000 megawatts from new generation, primarily wind and solar power plants. EPS
continues to implement projects, such as the 66-megawatt Kostolac wind farm and
the Petka solar power plant, with a capacity of close to 10 megawatts - said
Živković at a conference organized by the Association of Thermal Engineers of
Serbia.
He emphasized that EPS also
brought two large projects to an end. As part of the revitalization of the
pride of Serbian energy - Djerdap 1 hydropower plant, the last
revitalized unit was also commissioned, whose trial operation will commence in
the next three days. Unit A3 remains online after this.
- We also created conditions to
bring the construction of the thermal power plant Kostolac B3 to an end.
Boiler tests, mechanical rotation of the turbine and the generator have been
completed, while the final testing processes and grid synchronization of the unit
remain. The revitalization of Vlasina hydropower power plants and Djerdap 2 hydropower
plant are still pending. In this way, we will create the conditions for the
hydro sector to operate smoothly and contribute to the RES share in our energy
mix - added Živković.
He estimated that the green
road will create the conditions to improve the security of supply in Serbia
through diversification.
- The state should rely on
domestic resources and institutions that have proven themselves in the past by
developing a functional electricity industry both locally and abroad. Even now
efforts are invested into building new and modernizing existing plants - said prof.
Dr. Predrag Stefanović, chairman of the Society of Thermal Engineers of Serbia.
Introductory lectures were
held on the first day of the conference Elektrane 2023. Aleksandar
Jakovljević, director of the Strategy Sector of EPS, spoke about the position
of power companies in the energy transition, while Dragan Belonić, director of
HPP Djerdap 1, presented the revitalization project of this HPP. Charters were
awarded to the Serbian Committee of the World Energy Council and Elektroprivreda
Srbije.