Fire at Serbia's TE Kostolac halts power production, risks grid stability

The A2 block at Serbia's TE Kostolac thermal power plant is currently offline and not producing electricity due to a significant failure following a fire. The incident, which occurred on July 31, has led to substantial damage to critical equipment, including the regenerative air heater (RZV-u).

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The heater failure due to the fire occurred during the planned exit of the block from overhaul, due to causes that could not be predicted or prevented in any way, meaning that due to the occurrence and spread of fire inside the heater housing, it was not possible to prevent damage to the mentioned equipment at that moment.

Elektroprivreda Srbije (EPS), the state-owned power utility, has confirmed the damage through a public procurement document. The document details that approximately 50% of the RZV's filling, along with its supporting plates and sealing elements, were destroyed. The fire reportedly started as the block was exiting a scheduled maintenance period, with EPS stating the causes were unpredictable and unavoidable.

This failure poses a considerable risk to Serbia's energy stability, as the A2 block accounts for about 4.5% of the country's total maximum electricity demand. EPS has initiated a negotiated procurement procedure, bypassing public tender, to expedite the delivery and installation of replacement parts, estimated to cost around 1.2 million euros.

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Due to the mentioned heater failure, block A2 is out of operation and does not produce electricity.

The urgency of the situation is highlighted by EPS's warning of a "high risk of a prolonged block outage and jeopardizing the stability of the energy system." The company is seeking bids for the repair work, with the deadline for offers set for August 12. This incident follows a separate, smaller contract for the overhaul of both RZV units at the A2 block earlier in April.

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high risk of a prolonged block outage and jeopardizing the stability of the energy system