Djedovic Handanovic, US ambassador discuss cooperation in energy sector

BELGRADE - Serbian Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic met with US Ambassador to Belgrade Christopher Hill on Friday to discuss bilateral cooperation in the energy sector.

Djedovic Handanovic said investments in renewables were one of the pillars of energy transition and that objectives were achievable by 2030 through efficient investing by both the public and the private sectors, the Ministry of Energy and Mining said in a statement.

"A project to build 1 GW's worth of solar plants with battery storage, to be carried out with a strategic partner, a consortium led by the South Korean company Hyundai Engineering, is one of the priority projects in the renewables sector because, once it has been completed, that capacity will significantly boost the production portfolio of (the national power company) EPS," she said.

She added that a preliminary justifiability study for a Djerdap 3 hydropower plant was due to be completed soon and that technical and economic analyses would reveal the optimal capacities of the future hydropower plant.

"We will also notify the Romanian side of the conclusions of the study, and preliminary analyses show there is no negative impact on the operation of the existing Djerdap 1 and Djerdap 2 hydropower plants," the minister said.

Djedovic Handanovic said the US was providing significant technical assistance to Serbia's energy sector through various projects carried out by USAID.

She said that, following the launch of a gas interconnection with Bulgaria, completed in 12 months, Serbia intended to continue to connect with neighbours and that building gas interconnectors with North Macedonia and Romania was a priority in order to boost energy security and diversify supply sources.