If, by any chance, Montenegro respects the document it adopted, the construction of the second block of the "Pljevlja" Thermal Power Plant would be in the final phase, because the Energy Development Strategy until 2025 stipulates that block 2 will be built by 2013.
In that document, which has about 200 pages, Pljevlja and its natural potentials are mentioned on more than 70 pages, but in the meantime, despite that fact, the Government has marked the construction of hydroelectric power plants on Morača as a priority.
According to the Strategy, the construction of the HPP would cost 430 million euros, and the second block of the Thermal Power Plant would cost 140 million euros, with the fact that the heating of Pljevlja is also planned as part of that project, for which 20 million must be allocated. An additional eighty million should be invested in the Coal Mine in order to prepare for the excavation of larger quantities of coal. Despite these costs, the construction of the second block would be about 200 million cheaper than the energy facilities on Morača, for the construction of which they are persistently lobbying the Government.
In addition, the annual projected electricity production of both blocks of the Thermal Power Plant would be around 2.500 gigawatt hours, while the production of the four hydropower plants would amount to 693 gigawatt hours per year.
According to some experts, the construction of the second block of the "Pljevlja" Thermal Power Plant is the only solution for Montenegro, which would most quickly and completely solve the existing electricity deficit, which reached 1,5 billion kilowatts.
According to some experts, the construction of the second block of the "Pljevlja" Thermal Power Plant is the only solution for Montenegro, which would most quickly and completely solve the existing electricity deficit, which reached 1,5 billion kilowatts.
The second block also has many comparative advantages compared to any hydropower source, as the construction would take a maximum of three years, which is twice as long compared to hydropower plants.
The total investments for the construction of the second block are much smaller due to the fact that during the construction of the existing block, 30 percent of the common facilities have already been completed. Some say that this work should not be seen as the construction of another facility, but as an expansion of the capacity of the existing source, which, according to experts in the field, differs in many ways from the construction of a new capacity.
Assistant Minister of Economy Miodrag Čanović told "Vijesta" that the state has not given up on the construction of the second block of the Thermal Power Plant, but still believes that the opening of the mine and the construction of the thermal power plant in Maoč with two blocks of 250 megawatts is more certain.
According to him, the only reason why the construction of the second unit was not started within the stipulated period is the recommendation from the Study conducted by a German company, giving priority to the construction of the second unit of the thermal power plant in Maoč.
The assistant minister reminds that a tender was advertised for Maoče, but no one came forward, considering that it is an investment that would amount to around one billion euros.
The assistant minister reminds that a tender was advertised for Maoče, but no one came forward, considering that it is an investment that would amount to around one billion euros.
He believes that the crisis affected the reduced interest in that business, as well as the fact that Europe foresees the payment of penalties for producers with large gas emissions, "so many investors and countries thought about it".
Čanović, however, expects that the production of electricity from thermal power plants and other sources will come to the fore again after the situation with nuclear plants in Japan.
"The option exists, and now it will come to the fore especially because of the situation with the nuclear power plant. Everyone was thinking about nuclear energy, but the situation has changed after what happened in Japan," says Čanović.
The Technical Director of the Coal Mine Dr. Ratomir Stanić claims that by building the second block of the Thermal Power Plant and expanding the capacity of the Pljeval Mine, the energy crisis in Montenegro can be alleviated in the fastest and cheapest way.
He said that Pljeval coal is a significant potential, given that the reserves amount to about 170 million tons, and that this information must not be forgotten when choosing the energy facility to be built.
"The second unit of the TE can be built quickly, because around 60 million dollars have already been invested in the infrastructure of the Thermal Power Plant. We all need to seriously consider whether we will give up those 60 million so easily or find a calculation and put them into operation. The mine's existing capacity can with 1,5 million tons under certain conditions to be developed in three years," said Stanić.
He says that about 250 million euros should be invested in the expansion of the mine's capacity and the construction of the second block, and that the second block would produce about one billion and one hundred million kilowatt-hours of electricity.
In addition to the assessment that 100 countries base their energy production on coal, Stanić states that investments are in favor of the construction of the second block.
In addition to the assessment that 100 countries base their energy production on coal, Stanić states that investments are in favor of the construction of the second block.
According to him, the accumulated environmental problems in Pljevlja can only be solved by building a second block of thermal power plants, because then technology that corresponds to the standards applied in the world would have to be used.
Also, he says, the construction of the second block would create conditions for heating the city.
Stanić added that the money allocated for the import of electricity for three years could finance the construction of a facility for the production of electricity.
"If this is not done, the state will suffer unfathomable consequences, and especially the Pljeval municipality, which by ceasing the operation of the Mine and Thermal Power Plant, would violate the development strategy of the municipality," concluded Stanić.
The last source of electricity in Montenegro was built almost 30 years ago, when the Pljevlja Thermal Power Plant started operating.
When it is taken into account that thermal power plants have increased investments in solving environmental problems and that blocks under 400 megawatts are no longer being built in the world, then from that point of view the construction of a thermal power plant in Maoč would have an advantage.
On the other hand, starting the construction of a thermal power plant from the beginning, experts say, is not an easy job at all and would require much more time than the construction of another, i.e. expansion of the existing block.
Which of these two variants will be chosen will mostly depend on potential investors, who, as Čanović says, show interest in these projects.
Which of these two variants will be chosen will mostly depend on potential investors, who, as Čanović says, show interest in these projects.
The construction of the second block would be about 200 million cheaper than the energy facilities on Morača, for the construction of which they are persistently lobbying the Government.
The strategies favor the Maoists
In a study done in 2009 by a German company, it is stated that only 17 percent of the equipment that exists today in Pljevlja could be used during the construction of the second block.
This refers to buildings and installations for dematerialized water purification, warehouse, storage and coal transfer system, substation, reserve oil-fired boiler for starting operations, administrative and social buildings, reservoir for water supply, ash tailings. German experts say that most of the equipment in the facility is over 20 years old and related to the operation of the first unit, and therefore exposed to wear and tear.
"Accordingly, the equipment should be replaced during the working life of Pljevlja II, which means that these costs are not saved, but those costs are postponed. The mechanical equipment must be replaced due to age and wear, so it cannot be considered as a saving. Construction works are proceeding normally from 10 percent to 15 percent of the total capital costs. In the case of Pljevlja II, the boiler room and machine building with the foundation for the turbine must be built, as well as the cooling tower. In this sense, the savings will not exceed 5 percent," stated the German experts.
Among other things, the higher capacity of the power plant in Maoč and the reduced impact on the environment are mentioned as a contribution to the construction of the thermal power plant in Maoč.
As a contribution to the construction of a thermal power plant in Maoč, they cite, among others, a higher capacity of the power plant in Maoč and a reduced impact on the environment. The energy development strategy from the seventies of the last century precisely defined that the second block of the thermal power plant in Pljevlja should be built first, and only then the opening of the Maoče mine and the construction of the thermal power plant. This was also confirmed by the latest Strategy adopted a few years ago.
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