Coal news and updates

Serbia to spend EUR 1 billion on electricity, coal imports by end of year

Serbia will spend EUR 1 billion on electricity and coal imports by the end of the year, and imports will continue until 2024, said Zorana Mihajlović, Serbian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Mining and Energy.

Zorana Mihajlović explained that it is an estimated amount for the purchase of electricity and coal by the end of the year, including about EUR 530 million for imports since December 12, when Serbia’s biggest thermal power plants broke down, until the end of April.

The costs of electricity imports are much higher due to the energy crisis. In previous years electricity was imported at EUR 30 to 50 per megawatt-hour (MWh), and now prices are three to four times higher.

Of note, on December 12, due to poor coal quality and insufficient quantities, production was sharply reduced in the two largest coal power plants operated by Elektroprivreda Srbije (EPS) – TENT A and TENT B, prompting the need for emergency imports to cover the shortfall for domestic consumption. At one point it reached 45%.