Serbia to Develop 11.3 GW of Solar and Wind Power Projects

Serbia has released its draft program of economic reforms for the period 2022-2024, which envisages the implementation of state projects for the construction of wind farms with a capacity of 3,000 megawatts (MW) and solar power plants with a capacity of 8,300 MW.

Serbia drafts the economic reforms program every year as a candidate country for EU membership in order to prepare for the economic and fiscal supervision within the Union. The draft is prepared by the Ministry of Finance.

A new investment plan has been produced with projects in energy and mining worth about EUR 17 billion out of which about EUR 12 billion is planned for wind farms, solar power plants and hydropower plants. If all projects from the investment plan are implemented, CO2 emissions would be reduced by about 23 million tons, according to the draft.

In addition to the 66 MW Kostolac wind farm, which is already under construction by state-owned power utility Elektroprivreda Srbije (EPS), Zabela and Kovin-Dubovac are also possible locations for state wind projects. According to the document, there is a possibility for a public-private partnership with Fintel Energija for the construction of the Maestrale Ring wind farm.

State wind farms could reach a combined installed capacity of 3,000 MW and total investment is estimated at EUR 3 billion, the draft reads. The government’s projects for solar power plants would be implemented on 200,000 hectares of state land with low economic value. It is possible to install about 2,000 MW of solar power plants, the draft underlines.

Within the plan, a cooperation agreement was signed between the Ministry of Mining and Energy and UGT Renewables LLC. The government and UGT are negotiating the construction of solar power plants with a total capacity of about 1,000 MW, which should span a total of 2,000 hectares in a dozen locations across Serbia.

The power plants could produce 1 GWh and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1.9 million tons per year, according to the draft. On the land that belongs to EPS, primarily on ash dumps, it is possible to build about 300 MW of solar power plants, an investment estimated at EUR 200 million. Of note, EPS recently announced a tender for the projects.

The draft points to the ongoing major campaign to promote prosumers and adds 600 square kilometers of roofs were identified as available for the installation of solar panels. Installing solar panels on 10 percent of the said area would provide an installed capacity of 6,000 MW, which is 70 percent of the current installed capacity for electricity production in Serbia, and annual production of 7 TWh, which is about 20 percent of total production in Serbia, according to the draft. In total, the government’s projects for solar power plants could bring online 8,300 MW of installed capacity, and EUR 6.2 billion in investment.