Pumped-storage plant Čapljina to deliver half of 2019 output to ERS

Pumped-storage hydropower plant PHE Čapljina will deliver half of its output in 2019 to Elektroprivreda Republike Srpske (ERS), in what will be the first time in about 15 years for the Bosnian Serb entity’s state power utility to receive electricity from PHE Čapljina, according to ERS General Manager Luka Petrović, local media have reported.

Under an agreement concluded between three sides – ERS, hydropower plant operator Hidroelektrane na Trebišnjici (HET), and public power utility Elektroprivreda Hrvatske Zajednice Herceg-Bosne (EPHZHB) from Mostar – the Čapljina hydropower plant will provide electricity for the needs of ERS, which will have a positive impact on Republika Srpska’s overall energy balance, according to Petrović.

The agreement includes an obligation for HET to secure regulated water release at the Gorica dam of its Trebinje 2 hydropower plant, while HZ HB has agreed to ensure the production of electricity at the Čapljina hydropower plant, he explained.

“The agreement has created conditions for HET to raise significant additional revenues, which is particularly important given that hydropower plant HE Dubrovnik is out of service,” said Petrović.

PHE Čapljina has two power generation units, with a total installed capacity of 420 MW.

Three sides plan to jointly provide reserve services

According to Petrović, the framework agreement envisages cooperation between the three sides on providing reserve services within the energy system, which will be regulated through a separate agreement to be drafted over the coming period.

“This is a very significant agreement, from which everyone will benefit. HET alone will have an additional 24 GWh of electricity per month,” said Petrović.

It was built in 1979 as the first pumped-storage hydropower plant in the former Yugoslavia. Until 1992 the plant operated as part of HET, and from that year on it has been part of the Mostar-based HZ HB, according to the reports.