Serbia Power Utility Company EPS will increase income and investments and initiate organizational changes for saving 36 MEUR per year in 2014th, says acting General Director of EPS. Acting Director General of EPS, Aleksandar Obradovic stated that the first results of reforms in EPS were expected in the first half of 2014.
“We succeeded to create conditions for corporatization, that is, for better and more efficient EPS organization by new statute establishment, the abolition of the Board of Directors and the founding of Supervisory Board. Corporatization means inefficiencies cutting”, Obradovic said.
According to him, the Serbian government should approve the EPS statute by mid-January, AND after the director has to propose a set of organizational measures and introduce a management system that will reduce administrative costs by up to 100.000 EUR per day.
“It was said that it must be done, that EPS must be centralized, corporatized and must go into a joint- stock company”, said Obradovic.
He said that the main reform target should be EPS to become profitable.
“EPS has already in 2013th achieved financial results that are 200 MEUR better than planned. In 2014th we again go with a more modest plan and put the emphasis on investment”, said Obradovic.
According to the original plan, EPS should end up 2013th with 200 MEUR of losses.
Acting General Director of EPS said that the management plan was to present an investment plan for the next 10 years and EPS plan of profitability to the Ministry of Energy and the Government in the first quarter of 2014th.
“The level of this profit will be determined depending on the investment plans and to what extent the government will approve it. We will be able to talk concretely about the expected level of profit in mid-2014th”, Obradovic said.
He recalled that investments of around 200 MEUR in Mining Basin “Kolubara” and about 70 MEUR for the aggregate reconstruction in the hydro power plant “Zvornik” have been started in 2013th and that these activities will be continued also in 2014th.
The investment in new thermal unit in Kostolac is the first investment in new production facilities after more than 20 years. Such investment is our priority”, Obradovic said, adding that they made financial analysis for projects such as hydropower plant “Djedap 3”, “Bistrica” and TENT B3.
Obradovic said that the investments in the electro energetic sector in the region were nearly halted due to decrease of electricity prices by about 30 percent in 2013th and the fall of the entire market.
Besides this, EPS also carries a “history credit “because it was not profitable for years and has huge debts, why, said EPS director, with the assistance of the Government, looks for strategic partners in the projects that it cannot realize alone.
He also said that citizens and businesses debts for electricity of 200 MEUR were solved through reprogram, and there is rest of 500 MEUR.
“We will do everything to make that money back into the EPS. Including court decisions and enforced payment. Electricity supply will be suspended for customers who do not pay electricity and EPS insists on that”, Obradovic said.
He added that for the EPS expansion in the region needs first to do “homework”, and that is to become more efficient, better and more profitable company. Otherwise, he added, as the loser it could become the overtaking victim.
“I’m fighting for EPS to remain state-owned company, and to become a profitable company, as a profitable company we can talk about expanding of EPS influence in the region”, Obradovic said.
Source; Serbia Energy