A subsidiary of power utility ERS ―Hidroelektrane na Drini‖, the company which operates hydropower plant Visegrad, announced that the plant has produced 1,078 GW of electricity in 2016, which is one of the best annual production results since its construction, and achieved a net profit in the amount of some 255,000 euros.
Director of HPP Visegrad Mile Lakic stressed that the initial annual production plan for 2016 was 924 GWh, which means that it was exceeded by some 17 %, while revised plan was exceeded by 5 %. According to him, the main reason for such good production results is very favorable hydrology, but also the exceptional operational readiness of the plant.
However, good production results are not followed by similar financial indicators, as in theory the plant should have achieved far larger profit that could be further invested in the modernization and upgrade of the plant itself and the local community. The main reason for poor financial performance is the lowest price of electricity for each produced kWh among all other hydropower plants operated by ERS. Last year, the price of electricity produced at HPP Visegrad and supplied for domestic consumption was just 0.007 euros/kWh, while the price of electricity for export was 0.038 euros/kWh.
HPP Visegrad was commissioned in 1989 and it has power output of 315 MW (3 x 105 MW) and average annual generation of 1,010 GWh of electricity. Record annual production was achieved in 2010 with 1,283.05 GWh.
