Drmno Coal Mine

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Drmno Coal Mine is an operating coal mine in Drmno, Braničevo, Central Serbia, Serbia.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Mine Name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Drmno Coal Mine	Drmno, Braničevo, Central Serbia, Serbia	44.721613, 21.245742 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the coal mine:

Loading map...

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Project Details

Table 2: Project status

Status	Status Detail	Opening Year	Closing Year
Operating	–	–	–

Table 3: Operation details

Note: The asterisk (*) signifies that the value is a GEM estimated figure.

Capacity (Mtpa)	Production (Mtpa)	Year of Production	Mine Type	Mining Method	Mine Size (km2)	Mine Depth (m)	Workforce Size
–	9.9	2022	Surface	Open Pit	60	50*	2162

Table 4: Coal resources and destination

Total Reserves (Mt)	Year of Total Reserves Recorded	Total Resources (Mt)	Coalfield	Coal Type	Coal Grade	Primary Consumer/ Destination
350	–	–	Kostolac	Lignite	Thermal	Kostolac power station

Table 5: Ownership and parent company

Owner	Parent Company	Headquarters
Elektroprivreda Srbije Beograd AD	Elektroprivreda Srbije Beograd AD [100%]	Serbia

Table 6: Historical production (unit: million tonnes per annum)

ROM or Saleable	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023
Saleable	9	8	8	9	9	9	9

Expansion/Extension

Table 6: Project status

* Added capacity of a coal mine refers to the enhancement in the mine's production capabilities beyond its initial production capacity.

Status	Status Detail	Project Type	Project Phase	Added Capacity (Mtpa)*	Start Year
Proposed	Construction	Expansion	–	2	2023

Note: The above section was automatically generated and is based on data from the Global Coal Mine Tracker April 2024 release and the September supplement.

Background

The Drmno coal mine is a surface mine in the Kostolac basin, Drmno, Serbia.

The mine is the last remaining active pit in the Kostolac mine complex. The mine is owned by the state-owned Elektroprivreda Srbije Beograd AD, which also owns the bigger Kolubara Mine Complex.

Deposit Drmno is located in the eastern part of Kostolac coal basin, i.e. east of the River Mlava and it covers the area of approximately 50 square kilometres. Kostolac coal basin produces 25 percent of lignite in Serbia. The eastern and southern borders of the deposit are natural, i.e. predefined by the geological conditions. The northern border of the deposit is the River Danube, even though the coal seam continuously expands beneath Danube and pass into the deposit Kovin.

The mine supplies coal to Kostolac Power Plant.

100 MW of solar capacity has been under consideration in the outskirts of the Drmno mine, and up to 600 MW has been envisaged for the internal landfills of the mine. Apart from the planned solar capacities, EPS is building the Kostolac wind farm on the Drmno, Petka, Cirikovac and Klenovnik locations at the mined-out areas and landfills of the Kostolac complex.

• Owner: Elektroprivreda Srbije Beograd AD
• Parent Company: Government of the Republic of Serbia
• Location: Kostolac basin, Drmno, Serbia
• GPS coordinates: 44.482913, 20.244569 (exact)
• Mine status: Operating
• Start year: 1987
• Mineable Reserves: 350 million tonnes
• Coal type: Lignite (Thermal)
• Mine type: Surface
• Production: 9.1 million tonnes (2020), 9.4 million tonnes (2021), 9.9 million tonnes (2022)
• Number of employees: 2,162

Expansion

In February 2010 EPS and China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC) signed an $US1.25 preliminary contract for the redevelopment of the Kostolac Power Plant. Xinhua News Agency reported that the project will also include expanding the capacity of the Drmno mine from 9 to 12 million tonnes per year.

In December 2014, a loan agreement was signed by the Serbian government with the EXIM BANK OF CHINA for a $715.6 million project to build a new 350 MW unit (B3) at Kostolac power station and to extend the annual capacity of Drmno mine from 9 million tonnes to 12 million tonnes of lignite. As of 2019, construction was reported to be in progress with the new plant unit planned to be by the end of 2021.

In March 2019, it was reported that the transportation of a new modern excavator started, in which USD 100 million was invested, and which will enable an increase in the annual production to 12 million tonnes.

As of November 2022, the Minister of Mining and Energy said the power unit could come online "as soon as" October 2023 and special thanks were given to the workers at the Drmno mine, which will have its capacity grown by 30% with this project. Based on these announced plans, it appeared that the mine expansion was going ahead.

2022 production of the mine rose to 9.9 million tonnes, however 2023 production was lower at 9.2 million tonnes. In March 2024, it was announced that EPS has opened tender for geological exploration aiming to extend the capacity of the mine to 12 million tonnes. As of October 2024, the B3 unit of Kostolac power station was not yet commissioned and was was said to be undergoing testing.

In July 2024, Serbia released a draft Energy Sector Development Strategy of the Republic of Serbia up to 2040 with projections up to 2050. The document (page 66) stated that 'depending on the selected exploitation scenario and new limitations on the Drmno open cast mine, it is possible to open West Kostolac open cast mine as a replacement mine for Drmno mine'. Completion of updated investment cycle at Drmno mine was estimated at EUR 190-370 million (page 67), noting that the feasibility study was completed and investments differ depending on the selected design solution.

Mine Expansion

• Mine status: Proposed
• Production: 3 million tonnes per annum
• Start Year: 2024
• Source of Financing:

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Additional data

To access additional data, including an interactive map of world coal mines, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Mine Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.