On the Krnovo plateau, at the location of the future wind farm Gvozd, exploratory geological works are in progress, which will provide the developer of the wind farm’s design project quality bases for the preparation of technical documentation, said Head of Development and Engineering Department at Montenegrin power utility EPCG Ivan Mrvaljevic.
After the completion of geological exploration works, and on the basis of the developed conceptual design, technical conditions will be created for obtaining a construction permit. After the completion of the project and obtaining the construction permit, it is expected that the works on the construction of the wind farm will begin in 2021, with an estimated construction period of 18 months.
Wind farm Gvozd will have a total installed capacity of 54.6 MW and the expected annual electricity production of around 150 GWh. The project envisages phased construction and commissioning of 13 wind turbines, 110/33 kV Gvozd transformer station at the project location, reconstruction of Krnovo and Niksic transformer stations as well as construction of two single transmission lines 3 and 14 kilometers long. Negotiations to finance a project worth more than 60 million euros with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) are already under way. All tenders for the procurement of the main equipment for the wind farm, including the tender for the procurement of the wind turbines themselves, construction works, connections to the transmission network and other infrastructure will be conducted in accordance with EBRD rules.
In 2018, Last year, EPCG and Austrian company Ivicom have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the construction of Gvozd wind farm. CEO of EPCG Igor Noveljic said that the project will be cost effective as the submarine power cable between Montenegro and Italy will offer opportunities for export of “green” energy to Italian and European markets. The construction of Gvozd wind farm will be financed through loans, which will be provided by international financial institutions.