The Holding Slovenske Elektrarne (HSE) Group, the largest producer of electricity from renewable sources in Slovenia, had exceptional results in production in February. The power plants of the HSE Group, which associates the companies Dravske Elektrarne Maribor (DEM), Soške Elektrarne Nova Gorica (SENG) and a 49% stake in Hidroelektrarne na Spodnji Savi (HESS), produced 700 GWh of electricity in February, exceeding the monthly plan by 58%.

Andrej Tumpej, director of DEM, which manages eight large and five small hydro power plants (HPPs) on the Drava River, explained that the exceptional results had been achieved despite HPPs not working at full power: “The particularly favourable, although unusual, hydrological conditions for this time of the year, and the high readiness of our production units should be credited for the exceptional production of electricity. What also needs to be stressed is that the result was achieved with only two-thirds of the usual capacity, as overhauls and maintenance work on generators in all hydro power plants take place in this period. The latter is always done between December and March when the water level of the accumulations of the Drava River is usually at its lowest and, consequently, the drop in production due to generators not operating is also at its lowest. The climate change that we are witnessing also changes the hydrological regimes of our rivers. We adjusted the production plan for that period based on the data for the last twenty years, but we exceeded that plan since nature was so generous.”   

In the first two months of the year the company DEM produced 460 GWh of electricity, to exceed by 51% the plan for that period, which was for 306 GWh. It should be mentioned that, based on the data for the last twenty years, a new plan has been drafted for this year that is higher by 28% compared to the one drafted for that period last year. The electricity produced by Dravske Elektrarne Maribor satisfied the electricity needs of two-thirds of all Slovenian households in that period.

The electricity production by the HSE Group in February was the best in Soške Elektrarne Nova Gorica, where the February plan was exceeded by 100%. Dravske Elektrarne Maribor exceeded the plan for that period by 61%, and Hidroelektrarne na Spodnji Savi by 38%. SENG director Radovan Jereb also mentioned exceeded generation in Avče pumped-storage hydro power plant: “We produced in our hydro power plants more than 59.6 GWh of electricity to achieve 202.9% of the plan for the same month, while 25 GWh of electricity was generated in the Avče pumped-storage plant, which is 104% of the plan for February. The high operational readiness of the energy facilities of the SENG companies is of key importance for good utilisation of favourable hydrological conditions, which were considerably above the long-term average in the first two months of the year.”