The Student List has requested that the Ministry of Mining and Energy and power utility Elektroprivreda Srbije (EPS) disclose whether the company can ensure a stable electricity supply for all consumers in the country in the coming period, and to inform the public about the actual state that EPS is in. The list’s representatives claimed that problems are being kept under wraps so that the upcoming administration, expected to be established by the Student List following its recent election victory, would be blamed for the consequences.
“We call on current minister Dubravka Đedović Handanović and the management of Elektroprivreda Srbije to come forward and openly reveal to the public what condition this enterprise is in, the challenges we are facing, and the projections for operations and production through the end of the year. The citizens of Serbia have the right to know whether electricity supply is secure and whether we face any consequences in the period ahead, and if so, of what nature,” said Stevan Cvetićanin, one of the candidates of the Student List for members of parliament.
The Student List believes it is its absolute duty to raise the issue, of essential public interest, and demand a full, urgent, and transparent review of EPS’s operations.
These are not political matters, but existential issues of immediate importance to every single person in this country, Cvetićanin, a professor at the Faculty of Technical Sciences in Novi Sad, added at the Student List’s press conference.
State institutions and key resources are still controlled by the outgoing government
As an example, he noted that the hospital in Pančevo recently suffered a power outage lasting more than 40 minutes, arguing that a disaster was avoided solely due to the the medical staff’s alertness and dedication.
According to Cvetićanin, the problems within EPS are being hushed up, while their resolution is deferred to the future management so that responsibility for the consequences of years of mismanagement would ultimately be attributed to the incoming government.
“Such a scenario must not be allowed. State institutions and key national resources remain in the hands of the outgoing administration. Responsibility for the current state of affairs therefore cannot be shifted onto an entity that has not yet assumed management,” Cvetićanin pointed out.
The citizens of Serbia deserve to know how this situation came about and what consequences stem from decisions made in previous years, in his view.
Funds allocated for national stadium instead for power plants
The professor highlighted aging equipment, insufficient investment in maintenance, and delayed overhauls in EPS, stressing that they jeopardize the reliability of production capacity. For example, he said that unit A2 at the Kostolac A thermal power plant was out of service, while the capital overhaul of unit B2 at the Nikola Tesla B thermal power plant (TENT B) has been postponed for two years, leaving it operating at reduced capacity.
“Is it possible that at a time when we face serious issues in the energy sector, priority is given to projects like the national football stadium, while significant production assets remain non-operational?” he stated.
It is clear that in such a situation, electricity demands must be covered through imports, he said. According to him, this carries serious financial consequences, particularly in case of importing at unfavorable market prices.
Budget rebalance to secure funding for supply of electricity
“According to our information at hand, a budget rebalance was executed to secure additional funds to cover consumption. However, the question remains whether these funds are sufficient and for which period they have been secured. Is it until the end of the heating season, that is until when do we have to source electricity also by importing it?” Cvetićanin asked.
He said that the authorities that managed the energy system over the past 14 years must answer several questions, including whether there is a real possibility of additional costs appearing or potential power cuts.
Cvetićanin noted that the power grid is largely outdated, relying on coal power plants as the primary generation source, while that hydropower plants account for an important portion of total output.
Periods of low river water levels further constrained hydropower generation, once again highlighting the system’s vulnerability and the lack of an adequate energy strategy, he added.
