Kakanj Thermal Power Plant

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Kakanj Thermal Power Plant is an operating power station of at least 450-megawatts (MW) in Čatići, Kakanj, Zenica-Doboj, FBIH, Bosnia and Herzegovina with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating. It is also known as Kakanj-B power station (Unit 8, Unit 9).

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Kakanj Thermal Power Plant	Čatići, Kakanj, Zenica-Doboj, FBIH, Bosnia and Herzegovina	44.089633, 18.113865 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the power station.

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Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):

• Unit 5, Unit 6, Unit 7: 44.089633, 18.113865
• Unit 8, Unit 9: 44.089722, 18.114444

Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name	Status	Fuel(s)	Capacity (MW)	Technology	Start year	Retired year
Unit 5	operating	coal: lignite	110	subcritical	1969	2028 (planned)
Unit 6	operating	coal: lignite	110	subcritical	1977	–
Unit 7	operating	coal: lignite	230	unknown	1988	–
Unit 8	shelved	coal: lignite	300	unknown	2028 (planned)	–
Unit 9	cancelled	coal: lignite	300	unknown	2032	–

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name	Owner	Parent
Unit 5	Elektroprivreda BiH dd [100%]	Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina [90.4%]; other [9.6%]
Unit 6	Elektroprivreda BiH dd [100%]	Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina [90.4%]; other [9.6%]
Unit 7	Elektroprivreda BiH dd [100%]	Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina [90.4%]; other [9.6%]
Unit 8	Elektroprivreda BiH dd [100%]	Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina [90.4%]; other [9.6%]
Unit 9	Elektroprivreda BiH dd [100%]	Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina [90.4%]; other [9.6%]

Project-level coal details

• Coal source(s): Kakanj, Breza and Zenica mine, Kakanj, Breza and Zenica mines

Background

The plant is owned and operated by Elektroprivreda BiH, a publicly owned power utility. The plant supplies electricity to the grid and heat to the city of Kakanj.

On its website, Elektroprivreda BiH stated that 32 megawatt (units 1 and 2) were commissioned in 1956. A further two 32MW units were commissioned in 1960. These four units have now been decommissioned. The 110 MW Units 5 and 6 were commissioned in 1969 and 1977. Both these units were modernized in the mid 1990's following the Bosnian War. The 230 MW Unit 7 was commissioned in 1988 and then rebuilt.

The plant produced 1,978 GWh in 2021 and 1,924 GWh in 2022.

Coal supply

As of 2012, Elektroprivreda BiH stated on its website that the Kakanj power station burned approximately 1.8 million tonnes of coal from "mines Kakanj coal mine, Breza and Zenica coal mine and in smaller amount mines Gračanica, Bila and Livno."

Unit 5 Unlawful Operation

In March 2022, a proposal was made to extend the operation of Unit 5 until 2028, despite the expiry of the limited lifetime derogation period (also known as opt-out mechanism). The Energy Community Secretariat said this was "a clear breach of the obligations of Bosnia and Herzegovina under the Energy Community Treaty".

In October 2022, Energy Community initiated action against Bosnia and Herzegovina over the decision. They claimed that the country had breached pollution limits and failed to install necessary upgrades as mandated by the Large Combustion Plants Directive. BiH had two months to respond to the decision. As of May 2023, there was no news on the outcome of this action. A media source from July 2023 stated that the draft NECP 2023 (see below) did not hide the fact that Kakanj 5 will continue to operate after the end of its permitted lifetime. The Energy Community Secretariat in its comments and recommendations on the draft NECP published in December 2023 referred to the unlawful operation of Unit 5 until 2023. However other sources including EPBIH's updated business plans released in October 2023 and then in March 2024 state that Unit 5 will remain in operation.

As of December 2023, Elektroprivreda BiH was pursuing a potential biomass conversion of Unit 5. The unit would fire woody biomass and "mixed waste". The conversion was proposed in July 2019.

Proposed expansion

Unit 8

A possible 300 MW expansion was floated by Elektroprivreda BiH. China National Electric Engineering CO., Ltd (CNEEC) reportedly expressed interest in the project. In May 2011, Elektroprivreda BiH stated that CNEEC had gained Chinese government and bank support to finance the project. It was also reported that construction of the new unit was "planned in mid-2013".

A long-range plan for Elektroprivrede released in 2014 showed Unit 8 as scheduled for construction in 2018 and entering service in 2022.

On its website (2014), Elektroprivreda BiH stated that the power station received an environmental permit, and construction was scheduled to begin in 2015 and end in 2019.

According to a March 2017 report by Bankwatch, the plant’s original environmental permit expired. A new one appeared issued in July 2017.

On May 21, 2019, it was reported that the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) had tasked the state-owned power utility EPBiH "to accelerate all activities related to the projects for the construction of new units at existing coal-fired thermal power plants Tuzla (unit 7) and Kakanj (unit 8), as well as the project for the construction of TPP Banovici near the coalmine of the same name."

In late 2021, the ministry released the non-technical summary of the request for an environmental permit for public comment. Unit 8 was described as a proposed replacement for units 1, 2, 3 and 4, which are already closed, as well as for unit 5, which is expected to cease operations after the commissioning of unit 8. The investment in unit 8 was estimated at EUR 500 million, with an additional EUR 100 million for coal mines.

EPBIH's 2023-2025 business plan approved in December 2022 still noted it would build Kakanj 8. A year later, updated EPBIH's 2023-2025 business plan released in October 2023 also referred to the plan to build Unit 8 by 2028. According to Bankwatch as well, EPBIH claims the unit will be online by 2028.

In March 2024, the updated business plan of EPBIH for 2024-2026 had no mention of the Kakanj Unit 8. Given that the unit has no permits, no funding and was not the subject of more active discussions in 2023 and 2024, the unit was considered shelved, as of April 2024.

Unit 9

In 2014, an additional 300 MW expansion was announced for construction in 2028 and operation by 2032. The expansion project was presumed cancelled as of July 2022 as there were no known updates since 2014.

Draft NECP (2023): No New Coal

In April 2023, Bosnia and Herzegovina announced a draft national energy plan until 2030 that foresees no new coal-fired plants.

In July 2023, a ‘public’ consultation about Bosnia and Herzegovina’s (BiH) draft National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) was underway. Bankwatch Network summarized the following: "Despite considerable solar and wind potential, the Federation of BiH and Republika Srpska governments have relentlessly pushed to build new coal plants such as Tuzla 7 and Ugljevik III – as well as decades-old hydropower projects in highly sensitive locations – long past their sell-by dates. These dinosaurs have heavily burdened previous energy planning and left little space for new ideas. But the draft NECP finally looks like it was written in the 21st Century: it states that there will be no new fossil fuel plants – coal or gas. This is a significant step that must be maintained in the final version of the NECP."

In December 2023, Energy Community Secretariat published comments and recommendations on the draft NECP, summarizing that "the draft plan its current form lacks the analytical basis, the assessment of the impacts of the planned policies and the investments needed to achieve the corresponding targets and objectives. It does not fulfil its objective, namely, to provide a clear set of policies and measures that will set Bosnia and Herzegovina on a predictable path to achieve its 2030 energy and climate targets." Detailed recommendations were provided in the Secretariat report. The final NECP has to be submitted until 30 June 2024. As of September 2024, the final NECP has not be submitted yet.

Financing

• Unit 8: Proposed in 2011 - loans from China Development Bank

Articles and Resources

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.