Construction of new power generation unit within Kostolac B steam power plant agreed upon with the Chinese - Project valued at EUR 715.6 million

(the agreement signing)

The Electric Power Company of Serbia (EPS) signed an agreement on Wednesday with China's CMEC (China Machinery Engineering Corporation) on the construction of the third power generation unit within the Kostolac B steam power plant and the expansion of coal mine.

The value of this agreement is EUR 715.6 million.

The document signed in the Serbian government calls for the construction of a 350MW power generation unit that should be commissioned in late 2019. The plan is also to boost production at Drmno coal mine from 9 to 12 million tonnes of coal a year.

Energy Minister Zorana Mihajlovic said that Serbia would finally start building a new power generation unit within the Kostolac B steam power plant after 25 years.

Mihajlovic stressed that the third power station within that steam power plant would ensure a full stability of supply of electricity in Serbia.

The minister noted that Chinese partners haad agreed to respect all deadlines and to start construction by the end of 2014.

The new power generation unit B3 will cost USD 613 million, whereas the price of equipment for expanding the mine is USD 97.6 million.