September 20 (SeeNews) - Serbian state-owned power utility Elektroprivreda Srbije (EPS) has signed an agreement with Romania's Hidroelectrica to improve the joint operation of the Djerdap hydropower plant on the Danube river, the Serbian company said.
EPS and Hidroelectrica resolved issues on the maintenance of the hydro power complex and the reconstruction of the waterfall of the overflow dam of Djerdap 1 hydro power plant was agreed, the Serbian company said in a statement on Wednesday.
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"We made significant breakthroughs in the resolution of the problems and the future of Djerdap 1 and Djerdap 2. This is especially important and a great day since we finally found the solution to the problems we have been discussing for a long time," the managing director of EPS, Milorad Grcic, said.
The Djerdap hydro power complex, located in the Iron Gate gorge on the Danube river, was built jointly by Serbia and Romania and commissioned in the 1970s. The Serbian part of the complex comprises Djerdap 1 and Djerdap 2 HPPs with an installed capacity of 1,058 MW and 270 MW, respectively. Romania operates six turbines with a capacity of 194.3 MW each.
"In previous meetings, we have set out measures to solve problems from the past and what we need to do in the future in order to improve the operation. Again, today we have assessed the situation and the dynamics of the work, and I am very pleased to note that both sides are on the right track and that they made important steps," said Bogdan Badea, president of the management board of Hidroelectrica.
EPS expects to complete the overhaul of Djerdap 1 in January 2021. The overhaul was launched in 2009 and is part of a project to increase the capacity of each of the six power units of Djerdap 1, at a total cost of $139.8 million (119.5 million euro).
($ = 0.854454 euro)
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