On average, more than one third of water is lost in the public water supply network in Serbia, and one fifth of the water supply network loses more than 50 percent of water, this was stated today by President of the State Audit Institution (SAI) Dusko Pejovic.
In a report on the audit of the feasibility of managing water infrastructure, he stated that statistics for 2018 show that 33 percent of water is lost in Belgrade’s water network.
“It is estimated that more than ten billion dinars are lost annually on this basis”, Pejovic said.
He added that the loss of water is not the only cost, as it should be added to chemicals, energy and other accompanying expenses. Pejovic said that losses in the network could be reduced by investments in the revitalization of the network, which, according to state estimates, requires investments of around 800 million euros.
State Auditor Nada Tosic said that water losses in the Netherlands averaged five percent a year, in Germany seven, Slovenia 27, Romania 38, and in Serbia 35 percent.
The audit was performed at PUC Belgrade Water Supply and Sewerage, PUC Naisus from Niš, PUC Lazarevac and PUC Hameum from Prokuplje in the period from 2015 to 2018. The audit, with a questionnaire sent to 148 water companies, showed that ten percent of businesses do not measure water, 50 percent do not check the accuracy of water flow meters, and only five percent control the quantities of water produced and delivered to consumers.
The main reason for large water losses is the age of the water supply network.
Within Belgrade Water Supply and Sewerage, 22 percent of the network is between 46 and 55 years old, and ten percent of the 400 km long network is 55 years older.
