Kolubara G Coal Mine

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Kolubara G Coal Mine is an operating coal mine in Veliki Crjleni, Central Serbia, Serbia.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Mine Name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Kolubara G Coal Mine	Veliki Crjleni, Central Serbia, Serbia	44.4678357812436, 20.2664008823712 (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	–	2017	2026

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
–	4.4	2023	Surface	Open Pit	–	100	#REF!*

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
35	–	–	Kolubara	Lignite	Thermal	Kolubara B Power Station

Table 5: Ownership and parent company

Owner	Parent Company	Headquarters
Elektroprivreda Srbije Beograd AD	Government of the Republic of Serbia	Serbia

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

ROM or Saleable	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023
Saleable	0.2	4	6.1	6.5	5.2	5.7	4.4

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

Background

The Kolubara Field G coal mine is a surface mine near Veliki Crljeni, Serbia. It is part of Kolubara Mine Complex.

Field G coal mine is located in the western part of the Kolubara coal basin and it started operating in 2017 after the completed exploitation at the Veliki Crljeni mine, as its substitute capacity.

As per 2008 EBRD's document, Veliki Crljeni planned mining start in 2009 and should have ceased mining 2016. Technical report by EPS for 2017 confirmed that Veliki Crljeni section ceased to produce in 2016 and Field G started production in 2017.

As per the basin map from 2011 (see below) Veliki Crleni is located in the central part of the basin. However at the time the map did not yet indicate the location of Field G coal mine. As per Euracoal 2019 report, Field G mine extension was opened in 2017 with 36.5 million tonnes of lignite reserves.

A media source from April 2023 reported that the Field G coal mine will be expanded. According to the decision of the Ministry of of Environmental Protection, the expansion of Field G was necessary due to the delay in the procurement of the equipment for Radjlevo coal mine. Extra volumes of coal would last for another year. The total amount of the coal projected for excavation from Field G was stated at 35 million tonnes, that is, 5 million a year.

The national Energy Strategy of Serbia up to 2040 (with projections up to 2050) adopted in the second half of 2024 indicated that Field G is in the final stages of production and reserves shall be depleted until the beginning of 2026.

A map of the pits of the Kolubara mine complex.

National Coal Plans

In July 2024, Serbia adopted the final National Energy and Climate Plan highlighting that with the exception of some units, generally coal power plant capacities will be maintained and will not be dismantled until 2045. The national Energy Strategy of Serbia up to 2040 (with projections up to 2050) indicated that coal production shall be gradually lowered. It is estimated that the demand for brown coal and dry lignite will be halved by 2040, in relation to the reference year 2021. Therefore, it is necessary to optimize and rationalize production in underground coal mining, close non-viable mines with almost depleted reserves and invest in viable and profitable mines. Remaining coal reserves should acquire strategic character and it is necessary to make investment in overburden excavation and slope stabilization.

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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.