Republic of Srpska doesn’t have EUR 357 million to maintain production in coal power plants

Investments required for the stable operation of the Gacko and Ugljevik mines and coal power plants are estimated at BAM 700 million (EUR 357 million). But there is no money, according to Petar Đokić, Minister of Energy and Mining of the Republic of Srpska, one of the two entities that constitute Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Minister Petar Đokić held a meeting with the boards of directors and supervisory boards of RiTE Gacko and RiTE Ugljevik, firms operating two thermal power plants with accompanying coal mines. They acknowledged the situation is difficult.

Đokić stressed the significance of sustainability of the electricity system of the Republic of Srpska. He added that securing stable production in the facilities during the winter is also important.

The meeting was attended by the CEO of state-owned power utility Elektroprivreda Republike Srpske (ERS) Luka Petrović. It is the holding company of RiTE Gacko and RiTE Ugljevik.

Coal quality is a major issue for TPP Gacko

“We cannot provide funding that would be sufficient for them to operate normally. At one point today it was said the investment needs for the sustainability of mining output and the operation of thermal power plants amount to about BAM 350 million per power plant. We would currently need to secure that much money for one, and then the other, for them to be able to take full responsibility for secure operations. We don’t have that money,” Đokić stated, BN TV reported.

ERS CEO Luka Petrović said additional funds need to be found to stabilize the operations of the coal mines and two power plants and maintain low electricity prices.

The two thermal power plants are essential for the company as they account for about 70% of its electricity production. The severity of the dire state that they are in was evident in a recent outage of about ten days in TPP Ugljevik.

According to Maksim Skoko, acting director of RiTE Gacko, the firm’s troubles are centered on the mine as investments have been insufficient for years.

Two years ago, the Polje C mine was shut down due to a landslide and now there is only low-quality coal, he pointed out.

It is why much larger quantities of fuel oil are used in the Gacko power plant, increasing expenses, Skoko added.