In order to ensure a secure supply and energy independence of the country, it is necessary to have basic energy. In our country, they are thermal power plants. Without base energy, our system would be market dependent. Serbia has coal, and therefore a certain level of energy security. It may not suit someone, but it is like that – says prof. Dr. Milan Radunovic, who worked for 25 years in the power industry and on numerous EBRD projects around the world, commenting on the growing claims about the important role of solar panels and wind farms, which in the near future should completely exclude the use of coal as an energy source.
To the question asked – does abandoning coal make us dependent on energy – the answer is yes. We are becoming both energy and technologically dependent because the sun and wind cannot be carriers of base energy. Some claim that they can, but only with large installed battery capacities and with the possibility of energy storage. Therefore, in addition to the construction of solar and wind generators, investments must be made in converter stations and large battery plants, which means, our interlocutor explains, that the price of energy from these sources also includes investments for batteries and losses. At the same time, one should ask in which countries this equipment is produced and whether, in addition to energy, technological dependence is deepening. On the other hand, you are forced to buy the missing energy on the market, and it is enough to look at the prices on the stock exchanges in recent months, he says.
– In the last two months, the production of coal and electricity from thermal power plants has increased in Germany. That dictated the market and electricity prices. EU countries, meanwhile, have embarked on the transition of energy systems, built new thermal power plants, one might say thermal power plants of the future. The best example is Poland. It has built 7,000 megawatts of new thermal power plants, high efficiency and minimal pollution. In cooperation with “Siemens”, they also developed the “200 plus” project, a project of revitalization and creation of the future in accordance with the EU requirements for thermal capacities of installed power of more than 200 megawatts. But transition is a process, not a switch, so let’s say – here we started and finished. We tend to judge thermal power plants based on old power plants, some of which are seventy years old. It is important to note that the revitalization of the largest units has begun, so that we now have greater efficiency, desulphurization and reduced pollution. The construction of a new capacity is also in the final phase, a new one after forty years – says our interlocutor.
– And one more thing – there is no pure energy. In the case of coal and thermal power plants, we know that the cost of land reclamation and pollution was included in the price of electricity. With future thermal power plants, these costs are significantly lower. This is also the reason why the revitalization of thermal power plants in Serbia was approached, with the aim of raising efficiency and significantly improving the environment. What do we know about the recycling processes of used solar panels and wind turbines? For now, only the one from the study done in France “Black side of green energy”. But that was not included in the price of energy from renewable sources – points out prof. Radunovic.
The new law, which provided for the possibility of installing solar panels on the roofs of houses and factories, is of exceptional importance. The great role of solar panels can be seen here.
– What is the proposal – closing some thermal capacities, old and inefficient (for one megawatt of thermal capacity, a minimum of four megawatts of green energy should be built). By building 1,000 megawatts (two blocks of 500 each), we would contribute to the decarbonisation of Serbia while ensuring energy security. Due to high efficiency, the combustion of several million tons of coal per year would be reduced. The only alternative to coal is to build a nuclear power plant. It is certain that by using our own resources, we achieve energy independence and lower energy prices, because in the end, all the benefits of green kilowatts are paid for by consumers. At this moment, we should avoid lump sum evaluations, determinations based on the perception of individual segments, and not the whole, and without the influence of individual lobby teams – our interlocutor concludes, Politika reports.
