Concession agreement signed for 49.5 MW Grebak wind farm

Republika Srpska, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, has signed an agreement with Nevesinje-registered VE Grebak on a concession to build and operate the Grebak wind farm with an installed capacity of 49.5 MW, according to a press release from the entity’s government.

The Republika Srpska government awarded the concession to the company to build and operate the Grebak wind farm in the municipality of Nevesinje in January this year.

According to earlier reports, the project is worth BAM 130 million (around EUR 65 million), with 15 turbines planned to be installed.

The concession has been awarded for a 50-year period

The concession has been awarded for a period of 50 years, the Republika Srpska government recalled in the press release.

Under the concession contract, the Grebak wind farm will have an installed capacity of 49.5 MW, with a planned annual output of 130 GWh of electricity, which will be sold on the market, without an option to obtain incentives for electricity production.

The Grebak wind farm will produce electricity without incentives

Under the agreement, once the wind farm is built, the concessionaire will pay a concession fee of BAM 0.0055 per kWh (around EUR 0.0028 per kWh) to the Republika Srpska budget, 95% of which will go to the Nevesinje municipal coffers, according to the statement.

Trial production should be launched within three years

Miralem Čampara, CEO of VE Grebak, recently said that the land issue will be resolved only after the agreement with the government of Republika Srpska is signed.

The integral part of the concession agreement is a plan stating the test production would start within three years of signing, barring unforeseen circumstances, Čampara said, adding that once production is launched, it will be seen where the electricity will be sold, given that the concession agreement allows for selling electricity on foreign markets.

The signing of the concession agreement follows Republika Srpska’s recent decision to abolish feed-in tariffs for wind farms under changes to the law on renewable energy sources and efficient cogeneration.