Štavalj Power Station
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Štavalj Power Station is a cancelled power station in Štavalj, Zlatibor, Serbia.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Štavalj Power Station | Štavalj, Zlatibor, Serbia | 43.27305, 19.99944 (approximate) |
The map below shows the approximate location of the power station.
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cancelled | coal: lignite | 300 | unknown |
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Owner | Parent |
|---|---|
| Elektroprivreda Srbije Beograd AD [100%] | Elektroprivreda Srbije Beograd AD [100.0%] |
Project-level coal details
- Coal source(s): Štavalj lignite coal deposit
Background
Štavalj Power Station would be fuelled by the lignite Štavalj Coal Mine, estimated by the Serbia Ministry of Mining and Energy in 2009 to have 70 million tonnes of coal reserves, sufficient to fuel the plant for 40 years. A pre-feasibility study was developed for evaluating a new underground coal mine and thermal power plant complex, with the mine having a planned mining rate of 2.3 million tonnes per year of coal.[1]
On May 9, 2012, Serbia's state-run power utility Elektroprivreda Srbije (EPS) and Alta AS, a Czech engineering and energy company, signed a letter of intent to develop the plant and mine. The 500 million euro ($650 million) plant will take three to five years to complete, and will start after technical and financial details are agreed on. Financing will come from a “consortium of banks,” according to Alta. Serbia plans to become a net exporter of electricity by 2015.[2]
In its 2013 Annual Report, developer Alta AS stated it had signed a Memorandum with the Serbian Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure for the installation of a new mine and 380 MW power plant complex.[3] Plans for a 300 MW coal plant and mine were also listed in the 2013 Government of Serbia annual report,[4] as well as the Serbia Energy Sector Development Strategy until 2025.[5]
A working group for the realization of a 2 x 150 MW Štavalj coal project was formed in February 2014 by the Serbian government. The group was updated in April 2014, with the President of Sjenica municipality as a new member.[6]
The project was mentioned as potential in the new energy strategy of Serbia approved by the government in May 2015 and the Parliament in December 2015. However, the Serbian Government later adopted the 2016 Energy Strategy Implementation Plan up to 2023, and the only coal power plant planned by the end of 2023 was a new unit at the Kostolac power station. The proposed Štavalj power station would therefore be built after 2023, and is described as 300 MW in the 2016 Energy Strategy.[7]
In February 2019, China's Power Construction Corporation (PowerChina) announced that it was interested in constructing the Štavalj power station.[8]
The power station appeared in the country’s Spatial Plan for 2021-2035 (June 2021).[9]
However with no news on the project since June 2021, it was considered shelved as of June 2023. In August 2023, the project was once again mentioned in an interview with the President of Sjenica Municipality who stated that there is still some interest in the project, but it is questionable whether it will be built. The municipality would prefer to build solar plants instead.[10] As of April 2024, there was no further news on the project.
Given no tangible updates on the project and and Serbia's adoption of the final NECP in July 2024, the status of the project was revised to "cancelled", as of September 2024.
NECP: No New Coal
It was reported in April 2023 that Serbia was soon expected to officially announce its intention to phase out coal as soon as possible or by the end of 2050 at the latest. The obligations to decarbonize and shut down thermal power plants are part of a bill on the ratification of a contract on guarantees for the EUR 300 million loan that Elektroprivreda Srbije secured from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).[11]
In July 2023, Serbia’s draft National Energy and Climate Plan was on public consultation. As Bankwatch summarized, no new coal plants seemed to be planned after Kostolac B3, but there was no information about the phase-out timetable for existing plants.[12] In November 2023, Energy Community Secretariat released comments and recommendations on the draft NECP.[13] Serbia should present the final draft by June 2024.[13]
In July 2024, Serbia adopted the NECP and has aligned itself with Europe’s vision for the decarbonization of the energy sector.[14] In the same month, Serbia also released a draft Energy Sector Development Strategy of the Republic of Serbia up to 2040 showing no plans to build new thermal power plants.[15][16]
Opposition
The Center for Monitoring and Activism discussed the natural, cultural, and historical value of the region that would be impacted by the Štavalj plant. The power station would be supplied with coal from the Štavalj coal mine, which is located on the Pešter Plateau--where protected areas exist. The project would only increase the productivity, and therefore impact, of the mine in the area. The worsening water quality in the Uvač basin was particularly troubling.[17]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ "New 'Štavalj' coal mine and thermal power plant," Thermal Science 2009 Volume 13, Issue 1, Pages: 165-174
- ↑ Misha Savic, "Serbia, Alta to Construct 500 Million Euro Thermal Power Plant," Bloomberg, May 9, 2012
- ↑ "Annual Report," Alta AS, 2013
- ↑ "ИЗВЕШТАЈ О РАДУ ВЛАДЕ," ГОДИНУ, ЗА 2013, pg. 434
- ↑ "STRATEGIJU RAZVOJA ENERGETIKE REPUBLIKE SRBIJE DO 2025. GODINE SA PROJEKCIJAMA DO 2030. GODINE," 2014
- ↑ "ODLUKA O OBRAZOVANJU RADNE GRUPE ZA REALIZACIJU PROJEKTA „ŠTAVALJ," "Sl. glasnik RS", br. 13/2014 i 23/2014
- ↑ Energy sector development strategy of the Republic of Serbia, 2016 (cached version)
- ↑ Radomir Ralev, Powerchina eyes construction of coal-fired power plant in Serbia, SeeNews, February 27, 2019
- ↑ "Serbia: key national plan risks cementing coal dependence," Bankwatch, June 29, 2021
- ↑ "Sjenica would prefer to build solar plants". serbia-business.eu/. August 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Serbia to officially commit to phasing out coal by 2050". balkangreenenergynews.com. April 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Serbia’s draft NECP: What is the actual plan?" Bankwatch, July 17, 2023
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 "RECOMMENDATIONS 1/2023 by the Energy Community Secretariat on the Draft integrated National Energy and Climate Plan of the Republic of Serbia" (PDF). www.energy-community.org. November 2023.
{{cite web}}: line feed character in|title=at position 59 (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Serbia adopts Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan until 2030". balkangreenenergynews.com. July 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Energy Sector Development Strategy of the Republic of Serbia up to 2040 with Projections up to 2050" (PDF). www.mre.gov.rs. July 2024.
{{cite web}}: line feed character in|title=at position 35 (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Serbia publishes Draft Energy Sector Development Strategy up to 2040". balkangreenenergynews.com. July 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "ZAŠTIĆENA PODRUČJA: SPECIJALNI REZERVAT PRIRODE ‘’UVAC’’ (8)," Center for Monitoring and Activism, April 1, 2022
Additional data
To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
