EPS’s experts against use of batteries for storage of energy from renewable sources

Although lithium has been recommended in Serbia in the past months as the remedy for all problems, from electro-mobility to the storage of electrical energy obtained from renewable sources, for which purpose, according to media reports, it should soon start being used in China, the experts of EPS, at least when it comes to the latter application, are reserved.

As pointed out at the panel discussion “The Role of Elektroprivreda Srbije in the Green Energy Transition,” it is still better to store the electricity obtained from wind and solar power in reversible hydro power plants than in lithium-ion batteries.

As they said, the problem with batteries is that, for now, there is no recycling technology for them, and they also pollute the environment.

– Considering that the exploitation period of a battery is 20 to 25 years and that we don’t know how they can be processed, EPS is opting for reversible hydro power plants as storage facilities – said Jova Tosic, the head of the project of the construction of the solar power plant Petka at EPS.

This kind of a position, as EPS’s experts say, is not related to the current controversies regarding the mining of lithium in the territory of Serbia.

On the other hand, the use itself of solar panels is not controversial from the aspect of recycling because, according to Tosic, solar panels, upon the expiration of their life cycle, “are ground and mixed with construction materials” and are recycled that way. Other materials which are used for the construction of solar facilities also have their later application, sometimes even as recycled furniture.

The share of energy obtained from renewable sources was 41.58% last year, whereas in 2019, that percentage amounted to 33.04%, as shown by the data of the Renewables and Environmental Regulatory Institute (RERI). The state’s plan is to get 1,500 megawatts of electricity by 2026, without hydro potentials, which the participants in the panel assessed to be achievable.

This jump might be surprising to some, the fact that Serbia, in such a short time period, from 2019 to 2023, managed to increase its renewable energy capacities to such an extent. However, in Serbia, electricity obtained from hydro power plants has always comprised around a third of the total energy produced.

– Of the eight gigawatts of installed capacities in Serbia, around three gigawatts are obtained from hydro power plants. European countries have utilized over 70% of their hydro potentials. EPS has the capacities for new facilities of this type, considering that the potential of the Danube is 60% utilized, of the Drina around 40%, and of the Uvac 50%. For the Drina and the Danube, we need international agreements – explains Dragan Stankovic, the director of the sector for maintenance and investments in hydro power plants and renewable energy sources at EPS.

In addition to working on the Djerdap 3 project with the Romanian side, EPS is also working on the Bistrica project and the tenders should be opened in the autumn, whereas the works, according to Stankovic, might begin in 2026.

As for the solar power plant Petka, which is located within Kostolac, the works should be completed on February 20 next year, whereas the facility itself should be connected to the grid in March. The wind farm in Kostolac, which is also the first investment of the state in this sector, should start being built in October 2025. All in all, in Kostolac, taking into account all the various types of energy, a capacity of over 1,000 megawatts should be raised.

With the revitalization of hydro power plants done so far, EPS has obtained around 200 million new kilowatt-hours a year. The company is also preparing the revitalization of four hydro power plants – Vlasinske HPPs, Bistrica, Potpec and Djerdap 2. Some hydro power plants are being revitalized for the first time, and they have been working for over 50 years.

Elektroprivreda Srbije ad Beograd

EPS

Jova Tošić

Dragan Stanković

solar power plant Petka

Đerdap 3

Bistrica

Kostolac

wind farm in Kostolac

Vlasinske HPPs

Potpeć

Đerdap 2

lithium

The Role of Elektroprivreda Srbije in the Green Energy Transition

reversible hydro power plants

lithium ion batteries

energy obtained from renewable sources