Three new cuts in Kolubara to secure stable coal production – Expropriation of land, river bed shifting and construction of roads planned

Elektroprivreda Srbije (EPS) will invest around EUR 250 million in Rudarski Basen (RB) Kolubara, and Minister of Energy Aleksandar Antic said on Wednesday, May 3, for Tanjug that three new cuts would be opened – E, G and Radljevo, which will secure stable coal production in the long term.

As Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic stated during his recent visit to RB Kolubara that the investment in Kolubara in 2017 would be the biggest investment in Serbia, Antic specifies that the investment in question and maintenance of the current equipment would amount to RSD 31 billion, which, he believes, will have a capital effect on the future of the mining basin. He added that around four billion of the said sum would be put into expropriation of the land.

As he said, Kolubara needs to produce more than 28 million tons of coal each year, that is, to secure stable production of 28.5 to 30 million tons. Antic said that Prime Minister Vucic gave great support to the development of RB Kolubara, as well as the energy system on the whole.

– The first mining activities in fields E and G will take place in 2017. We expect to start producing coal in the field E and to initiate stripping in the field G by the end of the year, whereas, in 2018, we will install the first system in the Radljevo field, the biggest and most important one – Antic announced.

He said for Tanjug that Radljevo would be developed in the coming years with the aim of replacing the Tamnava-Zapadno Polje cut.

The minister reminded that Kolubara was very important for EPS, as around 50% of electricity in Serbia was produced from the coal from Kolubara. He added that funds from EPS' current operations would be set aside for all investments in Kolubara and reminded that EPS had around RSD 55 billion in its account at the moment.

Minister Antic explained that various phases in opening the three new fields were in progress and that investments needed to be made in their infrastructure. He stated that very valuable equipment would be procured for the three new cuts, as well as that a part of those investments should cover the previous draining of the cuts, construction of power supply units, transport systems, procurement of excavators and spreaders for the new Radljevo cut.

The shifting of the Pestan river bead, the shifting and construction of the new regional road Vreoci-Krusevica, as well as the shifting of the Ibar Highway in the length of 7.4 kilometers are also a part of the process, the minister noted.

Antic added that those activities would be accompanied by moving important electric energy systems, such as the power line next to the Ibar Highway.

– We are building new substations, which is a very complex and expensive process. We must depopulate certain parts of the municipalities of Lazarevac, Ub and Lajkovac and build new urban settlements for those people to move in – he said and noted that the school in Vreoci would be moved to and that a new school would be built in Crne Medje.

An urban settlement will be formed in Murgas, the municipality of Ub, as well well as the Kusadak settlement in the territory of Lazarevac, with 200 urban plots, as part of the continuation of the expropriation in Vreoci.

Elektroprivreda Srbije ad Beograd

Ministarstvo rudarstva i energetike Republike Srbije

Elektroprivreda Srbije

EPS

Rudarski Basen Kolubara

Ministry of Mining and Energy

Aleksandar Antic

field E Kolubara

field G Kolubara

field Radljevo

Tamnava Zapadno Polje cut

expropriation of land

draining of cuts

power supply units

transport systems

excavators

Pestan river

Vreoci Krusevica regional road

Ibar Highway

power lines

substations

Murgas settlement

Kusadak settlement

Vreoci