Serbian Energy Sector Insight

Published on 25. February 2011., Uncategorized

Introduction

Energy is one of the largest sectors of the Serbian economy, accounting to some 10% of the Serbian GDP. The Serbian energy sector consists of oil and natural gas industry, coal mines, an electric power system, a decentralized municipal district heating system and industrial energy. Activities in the energy sector include the production of domestic primary energy, the importation of primary energy (mostly oil and natural gas), the production of electric power and thermal energy, the production and the secondary processing of coal and the transport and distribution of energy and energy products to energy consumers.

The vast majority of the Serbian energy infrastructure is state-owned and is operated by the public enterprises that were established by the state to manage the various domestic energy sectors. The Serbian energy infrastructure is generally old and outdated, often in a very bad condition due to more than 10 years of neglect, a lack of investment, and the severe damage it took during the NATO bombing in 1999. The repair process started in 2000 with the assistance of international funds. However, the process is far from being finished, and much of the existing infrastructure is awaiting modernization which will require significant investments by both the public and private sector.

Electric Power Subsector

Overview

The Serbian production of electric power includes power plants with a total power of 7,120 MW, including 8 lignite-operated thermal power plants (