Page 32 - bne monthly magazine October 2022

32 I Cover story bne October 2022
Desperate Southeast Europe governments scramble for energy resources
bne IntelliNews
The small countries of Southeast
Europe are urgently looking
to new suppliers to help them though the energy crisis caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and related sanctions.
Soaring electricity prices on international markets have forced states from the region to look for ways to boost domestic generation – which in most cases means a return to coal power despite commitments to greening their energy sectors.
Even so, boosting coal power generation is complicated by the sudden need
to secure new coal supplies as well as ageing and unreliable coal power plants outside the EU countries.
The government of Slovenia, which is the richest country in emerging Europe in per capita terms and also prides itself on being one of the greenest, said
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back in January that it had endorsed a national strategy to phase out coal for power production by 2033 at the latest.
Fast forward eight months, and Ljubljana is scrambling to import coal to feed its one remaining coal-fired power plant Sostanj (TES), as well as trying to recruit miners to boost domestic production of coal.
TES produces as much as a third
of all electricity in Slovenia. It was controversially expanded with the addition of Unit 6, despite strong opposition by environmental groups and warnings that it could become a ‘stranded asset’ as the country phases out coal power generation.
“The situation at the mine is alarming, as the landfill only has supplies for just under a fortnight. This is also a reason why the government ordered the HSE to start immediately with coal import activities," Golob said in the statement.
“Slovenia must temporarily increase mining and coal imports in order to bridge the energy crisis, and on the other hand, we must be prepared for the restructuring of the region when the exit from coal will really begin,” Golob said.
Premogovnik Velenje’s general manager Janez Roser told RTV Slovenia that the management will try to maximise coal production and ensure larger stocks
of coal.
Speaking about a possible expansion of the mining locations, he said that it is a demanding project, which would take at least three years, and the staffing issue also poses an additional challenge.
Prime Minister Robert Golob said on September 14 that the Premogovnik Velenje coal mine, which supplies Sostanj, only has coal stocks sufficient for two weeks. His government declared a level one threat for power supply.