MANS today submitted to all caucuses in the Parliament its analysis related to the project of construction of the second thermal power plant in Pljevlja, which shows that this Government investment is economically inefficient, and will likely be a prelude to the allocation of state aid, which would be contrary to the strict requirements of the European Union when it comes to granting aid to the work of the coal mining industry.
Analysis of the research Center of MANS is the result of several months of collecting official information from a range of national and local institutions, as well as the National Electric Company (EPCG), the Law on free access to information and their processing. During that period MANS collected a significant amount of the documentation, but the key document on which is based the whole project – a feasibility study on the justification of the construction of the second block, which for the purposes of EPCG in 2012 made Slovenian company Echotec – is still secretive and the state energy company refuses to publish it.
The Montenegrin Government a few years ago launched the project of the second block of thermal power plant in Pljevlja under the pretext that the new block is needed built due to the deficit of electricity in the country and due to further economic development of Montenegro. However, it is not confirmed that there is a deficit of electricity nor the Government demonstrated the economic benefits that citizens could have of building a new “dirty sources” of energy.
Analysis of MANS research center shows that the actual investment cost of the project will exceed one billion euros, not counting the costs of health and environmental protection that by Greenpeace in mid-2013 is estimated at 2.5 billion euros for the 40 years of the second block, which means that total cost of the new government’s project could amount to a whopping 3.5 billion.
On the other hand, the Government’s entire investment based on incorrect information about the actual commercial coal reserves in the so-called narrow Pljevlja basin from which is planned to secure coal to operate the new unit. MANS’s data showed that cost-effective coal is available for the operation of the second block for only 20 years and not 40 years as it would take this investment to be paid off.
In addition, the Government this controversial project conceived and on manipulative information about the true cost of coal, on which basis unrealistically projected and the production of electricity cost. According to the current price of electricity, second block would annually produce losses in millions, and it is likely scenario that the Government would maintain it through the allocation of state subsidies.
Possible state subsidies would be contrary to the strict requirements of the European Union when it comes to the work of the coal mining industry. In this regard, it should point out that the world leaders at the Summit on Climate Change, held in Paris in December of last year, announced the start of a global efforts to reduce the use of fossil fuels and the closure of coal plants, but obviously the Montenegrin Government ignores these recommendations.
Last week MANS, along with Green Home, sent an official request to the President of the Parliamentary Committee for Economy and Finance to convene the session of this parliamentary body on the subject of the second block, on which it would be conducted control hearing of Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic, Deputy Prime Minister Vujica Lazovic and the Ministers of Finance and economy Radoje Zugic and Vladimir Kavaric.
For all these reasons, we believe that the deputies of the Parliament of Montenegro, which has a controlling role over the work of the Government, must have detailed information about the currently most valuable investment in the energy sector in Montenegro.
MANS
