EPS Hydropower Plants

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Translated version of this PSD: Serbian The EBRD is providing financing to EPS to rehabilitate 15 existing small hydro power plants across Serbia, and to add electricity generation capability to another seven existing dams, which will continue to be used for other water management purposes. The project is intended to extend the lifetime of the existing small hydro power plants, and will increase generation from renewable energy through increases in the capacity of the existing plants and the addition of further generation capacity to the other dams. The project, when approved by the EBRD’s Board of Directors, will have the following transition impact: Elektroprivreda Srbije, (EPS), the electricity company of Serbia, owned 100% by the Government of the Republic of Serbia. The EBRD is providing €45 million sovereign guaranteed loan to EPS. €54 million. The project has been categorized B under EBRD’s 2008 Environmental and Social Policy. The project involves rehabilitation of 15 existing small hydropower plants SHPPs) and creation of seven new SHPPs by adding hydropower generation capacity to seven existing dams. All but one of the twenty-two dams have been in place for decades; one new dam, which is not owned by EPS, was completed only in 2010 and the reservoir has not yet been filled. An independent consultant assisted the Bank in completing environmental and social due diligence, which confirmed there is limited potential for significant environmental or social impacts. EPS has agreed to implement a Stakeholder Engagement Plan to guide their communications with local and other stakeholders. This will include providing notice to local stakeholders concerning major activities at each project site. The Plan also establishes a grievance mechanism that can be used by stakeholders to register complaints or concerns with the individual projects or the Project as a whole. For all sites, an Environmental and Social Action Plan (ESAP) requires EPS to implement best practices during construction to reduce erosion, and where necessary to schedule construction so as to avoid affecting recreational use of roads and swimming areas. EPS also will upgrade its corporate systems for managing environmental, health and safety, and social issues. In addition, EPS will work with dam owners to assess dam safety and the need for downstream monitoring and/or warning systems, and also to ensure that emergency response plans are updated or developed for all project sites. The ESAP requires a number of specific actions to be taken to control or mitigate potential impacts at individual project locations, including, for example, assessing the adequacy of a fish pass (Moravica SHPP), coordinating activities with the water supply company (Raška and Celije SHPPs), and monitoring slope stability (Bovan SHPP). One of the sites --- Selova SHPP -- involves the addition of hydropower generation to a dam that has been constructed, but where the reservoir has not yet been filled. This dam is not owned by EPS and is not part of the Project per se. However, it is within the Area of Influence, as defined in the 2008 Environmental and Social Policy. The addition of hydropower generation capability and then generation itself will not themselves result in significant adverse impacts, but the owner’s closing of the dam and then clearing and filing the reservoir could have potentially significant impacts in three areas: resettlement and land acquisition for the areas needed for the reservoir and roads, dam safety and associated risks to the downstream community, and biodiversity impacts from clearing forest and flooding a total of 382 hectares. EPS is required to work with the dam owner to assess dam safety, to undertake studies of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, and to develop a program for resettlement and land acquisition consistent. These measures will be implemented in consultation with relevant authorities and will ensure that implementation of the Selova SHPP project will meet the Bank’s Performance Requirements 4 (community safety), 5 (resettlement and compensation), and 6 (biodiversity). The following technical co-operation (“TC”) funds are envisaged as part of this project: