Republika Srpska grants 50-year concession for 49.5 MW Grebak wind farm

The government of Republika Srpska, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), has granted Nevesinje-based firm VE Grebak a 50-year concession to build and operate a 49.5 MW wind farm, in an investment valued at BAM 130 million (about EUR 65 million), local media reported.

The Grebak wind farm is planned to have 15 turbines, while its annual electricity output is estimated at 130 GWh, according to reports.

Construction is expected to begin late in 2020, and it would take a year to complete the works. Grebak is located 5 km west of the city center, by the Nevesinje-Mostar road.

The signing of a concession agreement is expected in about a months’ time, when the investor would be required to pay a one-off fee of BAM 650,000 to the Republika Srpska budget, according to reports.

The concession fee is BAM 0.0055 per kWh of electricity produced, according to a decision of the Republika Srpska government, which has already taken effect after being published in the entity’s Official Gazette.

Wind potential exploration at the Grebak location began 10 years ago, and has been in full swing for the past two years.

Tendering for the concession was launched in late 2018, and BiH media reported at the time that the future wind farm would not receive state subsidies for renewable energy sources.

Nevesinje expected to receive BAM 600.000 – 700.000 annually in concession fees

Miralem Čampara, CEO of VE Grebak, has said the company will begin collecting the necessary paperwork and permits after signing the concession agreement. Resolving ownership issues at the Grebak location, which is the biggest problem, but also a precondition for obtaining a construction permit, is expected to take at least a year, according to him.

The wind farm is supposed to be a project of public interest, which should facilitate the work on resolving ownership issues, said Čampara, adding that both the local community and relevant institutions have been very accommodating so far and that the investor has not yet encountered an obstacle that could not be resolved within a reasonable timeframe.

The Grebak project would be very significant for the local community, one of the most underdeveloped in Republika Srpska.