Private partner overhauls street lighting in Topola

Mercury-vapor street lamps cost local budget about RSD 1 million (EUR 8.300) per month until now, Dragan Jovanović, Topola’s municipal assembly chief, told Tanjug news agency. Intelligent public lighting project is underway, aiming to cut expenses by up to 60%. The system’s reconstruction should be done by mid-July, with 3,000 LED lights installed in the town and all villages in the municipality, he added. The partner in the public–private endeavour is Elektro energija SRB DOO, Serbian subsidiary of Slovenian Elektro energija DOO, which invests EUR 800,000. Jovanović explained the municipality is obliged to pay the investor back over 15 years, from half of the savings on public lighting cost. Starting July 15, citizens will be able to report malfunctions by SMS, he added. Jovanović stated that Topola, located in central Serbia, is the first in Serbia to introduce ‘intelligent lighting’ through a public–private partnership, and that several municipalities bought its project documentation.

After getting efficient lighting, the local authority plans to abolish savings-restrictions in villages and the practice to switch off one out of two street lamps in the town.