Kamengrad lignite power plant, Bosnia-Herzegovina
An idea to build a power plant at the open-cast Kamengrad coal mine near Sanski Most in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina has been around for years, but in November 2017 it took a step forward with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Energy China International and the construction supplier Lager d.o.o. for a 2 x 215 MW plant.
![kamengrad lignite power plant, Bosnia-Herzegovina](https://bankwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/kamengrad.jpg)
Stay informed
We closely follow international public finance and bring critical updates from the ground.
Background
An idea to build a power plant at the open-cast Kamengrad coal mine near Sanski Most in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina has been around for years, but in November 2017 it took a step forward with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Energy China International and the construction supplier Lager d.o.o. for a 2 x 215 MW plant.
Few details are available about the plant, and it has no environmental permit and no financing. As with other plants across the region, unrealistic employment promises have already been made. In December 2017 head of the Sanski Most District Faris Hasanbegović stated that it would provide 1000 workplaces.
This does not appear to have convinced local people, however. As it would be a new power plant, it has attracted much more opposition locally than most other planned plants in the country. Sanski Most is located on the beautiful river Sana and prides itself on having no fewer than nine rivers in the district altogether. As a scenic and green area many of its residents feel that the power plant will spoil its potential for agriculture and tourism rather than bringing prosperity.
At a public debate on the adoption of the Una-Sana Canton spatial plan in August 2018, Sanski Most residents and the local council demanded the removal of the power plant project from the plan. This was carried out, although the plan was never adopted. In November 2019, another presentation of the Kamengrad coal power plant project appeared on the agenda of the Sanski Most Municipal Council. However, the meeting was cancelled after public pressure.
Another issue is that the concession for the mine was awarded to Lager d.o.o. after a bankruptcy procedure was carried out for the previous operator, RMU Kamengrad, but in 2017 the bankruptcy decision was declared illegal by the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina and returned to the Una-Sana Canton court.
As of early 2024, the plant is very unlikely to go ahead but has not been officially cancelled.
Latest news
Western Balkans decarbonisation is urgent: but the EU enlargement package is still sending mixed signals
Blog entry | 10 November, 2023The European Commission’s annual reports on the Western Balkan countries’ EU accession progress vary considerably on decarbonisation, sending mixed messages on coal and especially gas. The EU needs to take a more consistent approach if the region is to achieve decarbonisation by 2050 at the latest.
Read moreBosnia and Herzegovina’s draft NECP: The good, the bad and the ugly
Blog entry | 20 July, 2023Bosnia and Herzegovina’s draft NECP finally looks to the future, plans no new fossil fuel power plants and significantly scales back unrealistic hydropower plans. But existing coal plants are to keep operating illegally and the draft is furtive about coal-to-biomass plans.
Read moreNew report – deadly legal breaches by Western Balkan coal plants increased in 2022
Press release | 28 June, 2023In 2022, deadly air pollution from the Western Balkans’ coal power plants increased compared to 2021, according to the fifth edition of Bankwatch’s Comply or Close report, published today (1). Emissions of all three regulated pollutants – sulphur dioxide (SO2), dust and nitrogen oxides (NOx) grew, and for the first time, the region’s overall limit for NOx was breached.
Read moreRelated publications
Croatian coal power plant predicted to be a killer – new study
Bankwatch Mail | 10 May, 2013 |A new report by Greenpeace Croatia, using European Environment Agency methodology, shows that the planned new 500 MW unit at the Plomin coal power plant in Croatia will cause approximately 17 early deaths annually, along with around 3970 lost working days due to illness and EUR 124.8 million in external costs.
NEVER AGAIN – Sostanj lignite power plant financing slammed
Bankwatch Mail | 10 May, 2013 |Following confirmation at the beginning of March that the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development are paying out half a billion euros in loans for a new unit at the Sostanj lignite power plant (TES 6) in Slovenia, 98 organisations sent an open letter to both banks calling on them to never commit to such misguided loans again.
Kolubara B: a project of the previous century
Briefing | 10 May, 2013 | Download PDFThe energy sector in Serbia is reminiscent of the industrial development strategy of the former socialist Yugoslavia, with thousands of megawatts of power plant capacities planned, and much of that production to be wasted, while people remain unable to afford their energy bills. The EBRD is set to fund this scenario with its support for a lignite-based, inefficient economy in Serbia. This briefing outlines arguments against financing the Kolubara B lignite power plant in Serbia.