Not-to-be first wind farm in Serbia to be built after all? – Plans for wind farm near Zajecar changed after 10 years, planned power 110 MW

The City of Zajecar has announced the early public inspection on the occasion of the second amendment to the detailed regulation plans for the construction of the wind farms Nova Vrska Cuka and Vrska Cuka II in the city’s territory.

The plan was commission by HSV preduzece za hidrogradnju, niskogradnju i visokogradnju from Vlasotince, which is also the investor.

The first changes regarding these wind farms were done in 2014.

According to the documentation which is available for public inspection, the need for the preparation of a second amendment to the plan for the wind farm Vrska Cuka 2 arose because “due to the passing of time, there has been a change within the technical conditions for the construction of the turbines regarding their efficiency, and increased power of the turbines and a better utilization of the wind power, in the change of the area encompassed by the plan, the parameters having to do with the construction, as well as the possibility of establishing a simpler road network between the wind turbine field and the control center.”

The power of the Vrska Cuka 2 power plant should be 90 MW. In other words, 15 to 20 wind generators with an individual power of 5 or 6 MW should be installed. The plan encompasses an area of around 480 ha in the cadaster municipalities of Prlita and Veliki Izvor.

The passing of time that has led to changes within the technical conditions for the construction of turbines regarding their efficiency and the parameters related to the construction, as well as the changes of the area covered by the plan, are the reasons for amending the plan for the power plant Nova Vrska Cuka.

The estimated area covered by the plan for the wind farm Nova Vrska Cuka encompasses an area of around 206 ha, in the cadaster municipalities of Prlita and Grljan. A power of 20 MW is planned, that is, three wind generators of around 6 MW.

The public inspection will last until October 3.

Vrska Cuka was pompously announced 12 years ago as the first wind farm in Serbia, but since then, plenty of wind farms have been built in Serbia, and the one near Zajecar has not.

In 2012, the foundation stone was even laid down for the wind farm Vrska Cuka 2A, with a power of 9 MW, and the then energy adviser to the prime minister, Petar Skundric, stated that it was “a historic moment not just for Zajecar, but for Serbia as well, because this marks the beginning of the realization of the project of the construction of energy capacities which will produce wind-based energy.”

After this wind farm, another three, with a total installed power of 35.45 megawatts were supposed to be built in the same location.

The company VP Energy Systems from Switzerland was presented as the investor at the time, and the announced value of the investment was EUR 70 million.

The beginning of the construction of the wind farm was announced again two years later, but in 2016, as the media reported, the agreement with the Swiss company was terminated, after which a pre-agreement was signed with the Czech Vision Group.

However, as soon as the year after, the Czech investor opted out of the project because, as they said for eKapija at the time, Zajecar had been unable to secure the quotas for a wind park of a sufficient power.

To clarify, Zajecar had a quota available which enabled the construction of a wind farm with 36 MW of power, whereas the requirement of the Czech company and its partners was for the project to be expanded to a minimum of 60 MW of installed power.

As Barbora Bartokova explained for eKapija at the time, that is why Vision Group 21 opted out of the project, but she added that there was “readiness to reactivate the project if Zajecar secures the minimum required power of 60 MW”.

I. Z.

Grad Zaječar

HSV za hidrogradnju niskogradnju i visokogradnju d.o.o. Vlasotince

City of Zaječar

HSV preduzeće za hidrogradnju niskogradnju i visokogradnju Vlasotince

Nova Vrška čuka

Vrška čuka II

Prlita

Veliki Izvor

VP Energy Systems Switzerland

Vision Group 21 Czechia

Vision Group

Vrška Čuka

Petar Škundrić

wind farm Vrška čuka

detailed regulation plan wind farm Vrška čuka