ĐOKIĆ: RETURN OF RiTE UGLJEVIK TO GRID IS IMPORTANT

BIJELJINA, SEPTEMBER 4 /SRNA/ - Republika Srpska Minister of Energy and Mining Petar Đokić said today that the return of the Ugljevik Mine and Thermal Power Plant /RiTE/ to the system is of great importance for the energy system of Republika Srpska.

"It means a great deal that they are returning. Unfortunately, in the period around six or seven years ago, the Ugljevik Mine and Thermal Power Plant /RiTE/ had seriously neglected their activities related to expropriation. In other words, they were not creating areas for coal extraction. As a result, over the past year or so, they have been left with much smaller areas where there are not sufficient quantities of coal to ensure continuous production. At this point, they have secured sufficient quantities to enable them to resume production," Đokić told reporters in Bijeljina.

He stressed that this is very important for the energy system, particularly during this time of year, when electricity consumption is high, almost reaching winter levels due to high temperatures and the use of cooling systems by businesses and households.

"Therefore, it is of great importance for the energy system and for Elektroprivreda Republike Srpske that such an important energy facility returns to production," Đokić said.