The Electric Power Company of Montenegro (EPCG) announced that the project for the ecological reconstruction of the Pljevlja Thermal Power Plant was postponed several times during the period when the previous management structures, namely the staff of the Civic Movement URA, managed the state-owned company.
They stated this in response to a call from the leader of the Civic Movement URA, Dritan Abazović, who called on EPCG to announce the amount of its current debt, stating that according to his knowledge it amounts to around 96 million euros.
"First of all, it is important to recall that the project for the ecological reconstruction of the Pljevlja Thermal Power Plant was postponed several times precisely during the period when the previous management structures, namely the staff of Abazović's URA, managed the Electric Power Company of Montenegro. If the project had been managed responsibly then, it would have been completed by today and the company would not have suffered the financial consequences of years of delays. The current management has undertaken the obligation to implement the project to the end, while respecting all contractual and environmental standards, regardless of the challenges it inherited," EPCG announced.
They remind that upon taking over, EPCG "found significantly depleted coal reserves", which, as they stated, had previously been spent irrationally and in the short term, for the sake of temporary results. They also state that the Ćehotina relocation project was a major challenge, without which it would not have been possible to ensure a regular supply of coal to the Pljevlja thermal power plant.
"In such circumstances, the current management did not have the opportunity to further postpone demanding projects. On the contrary, it was necessary to take responsibility and continue with investments that guarantee the long-term stability of the energy system. When it comes to transparency, EPCG regularly publishes quarterly reports and all relevant business data, and the executive director clearly announced in the show Boje jutra that the current year will end with a financial deficit that was projected years earlier, precisely for the period of implementation of the ecological reconstruction," EPCG announced.
DON'T MISS IT
They state that this is a planned effect of a multi-year investment, not a sudden loss.
"Unfortunately, some comments and statements in public do not have a professional, but exclusively political background, motivated by particular interests and short-term calculations. Energy is a serious and complex system in which decisions must be based on knowledge, analysis and long-term vision, not on daily politics. EPCG believes that the entire society, and especially those segments that are currently pushing particularism, will reach a level at which the common interest, a stable energy system and sustainable development will be more important than any individual goals. Our company will, as before, work professionally, responsibly and transparently - in the interest of citizens, the economy and the future of the country," the statement reads.
Bonus video:
