Elektrodistribucija Srbije continues with the installation of new smart electricity meters supported through EU donations, which are one of the key tools for saving energy, reducing losses and empowering consumers to actively manage their own consumption.
“Through the EU donation of 110 million euros for the first mass installation of smart meters in Serbia, as well as through a new project financed by the EBRD and the WBIF grant, Elektrodistribucija Srbije received the support it needs for further development,” stated Gligo Vuković, representative of the EU Delegation in Serbia.
He added that in the previous co-financing of energy projects, priority was on the production and transmission of electricity, while distribution was often neglected, but that this must change because rapid and significant changes are expected.
“The European Union is moving towards empowering energy consumers who should take an active role in the market, and the precondition for that is real-time data measurement enabled by smart meters, while the second goal is to increase energy efficiency,” Vuković said.
Elektrodistribucija Srbije continues with the action of replacing meters, which will provide a total of 960.000 smart meters on the network by the end of 2026, said Biljana Komnenić, v. d. Director of EDS at the International Professional Conference “Smart meters to improve the electric power distribution system”.
From October, the replacement of 200.000 meters in Čačak, Kraljevo and Niš will begin, as part of a project financed by an EBRD loan of 40 million euros and an EU donation of 8 million euros, through the Investment Framework for the Western Balkans (WBIF).
Komnenić emphasized that 140.000 meters will be replaced in Niš alone, which will make that city the first in Serbia to be completely covered by smart meters. The previous experience of installing meters from EU grants, as she stated, made it possible to make installation plans faster and more organized. The new project should be completed within nine months, and the goal is to replace 80 percent of all meters in Serbia by the end of the decade. Smart meters bring lower network losses, while allowing consumers to monitor and control their energy consumption in real time.
Read more:
Smart electricity meters are coming
Trans-Balkan corridor for stable electricity supply
More about EU projects and support for Serbia’s energy sector
European Union is Serbia’s biggest donor in the field of energy, and it invested over one billion euros in grants since 2000. In Serbia, the EU finances projects aimed at security of supply, diversification of energy sources, market liberalization and improvement of energy efficiency.
