December 27 (SeeNews) - The Serbian government will invest between 600 million euro and 700 million euro ($679 million - $792 million) in the construction of a reversible hydropower plant (HPP) in Bistrica, in the southeast of the country, president Aleksandar Vucic said.
According to an earlier statement by the state-owned power utility company Elektroprivreda Srbije (EPS), the plant will have a capacity of 680 MW.
Projects regarding both the financing and the construction of the country's second reversible HPP are finalised, Vucic told a news conference on Sunday, without providing further details.
The Bistrica power plant could be operational by 2025, EPS acting director Milorad Grcic said during the conference.
"By 2028, Serbia must have enough electricity to cover both its own needs and for sale," Vucic said.
Due to their potential to balance out the oscillations in power output of renewable energy sources, reversible hydropower plants are Serbia's top priority in terms of the power generation infrastructure, Vucic said.
Serbia already has one reversible HPP near its western city of Bajina Basta.
Apart from the Bistrica plant, the country is planning to build another one with a 2,400 MW capacity near its eastern border with Romania, EPS said in an earlier statement.
($ = 0.8833 euro)