Croatia’s state-owned power utility Hrvatska Elektroprivreda (HEP) and engineering company Končar Group have signed an agreement to replace primary equipment at HPP Senj as part of a reconstruction and revitalization project that will increase the hydropower plant’s installed capacity by 20 MW and its annual production by at least 50 GWh.

HPP Senj currently has an installed capacity of 216 MW, and its average annual output is 970 GWh, accounting for about 20% of the production of all Croatian hydropower plants, or 10% of HEP’s overall electricity production, the company said in a statement.

The contract with Končar is worth EUR 43.8 million. The works, which will cover all three power generation units at HPP Senj, will begin in 2022 and are targeted for completion in 2026.

The value of the entire overhaul of HPP Senj, which will extend its lifespan by a further 50 years, is just under EUR 74 million. The value of the equipment installed and works performed so far is EUR 11 million.

HEP’s project to overhaul 12 hydropower plants is worth EUR 520 million

The revitalization of HPP Senj is part of a wider project to overhaul HEP’s hydropower plants, worth a total of EUR 520 million. The investment will boost the power plants’ combined capacity by 170 MW and increase their annual electricity output by 330 GWh.

The investment cycle, launched in 2012, covers 12 out of 26 hydropower plants operated by HEP, and has already soaked EUR 210 million. So far, HEP has completed revitalization at three of the plants, while works at five more, including HE Senj, are under way. Overhaul projects for the remaining four are being prepared.

HEP is building HPP Senj 2 and hydropower system Kosinj, with a total capacity of 412 MW

Last year, HEP launched projects to build hydropower plant Senj 2 and hydropower system HES Kosinj, with a combined installed capacity of 412 MW. The value of the investment is about EUR 450 million.