ESM launches annual tender for 600,000 tonnes of coal; stockpile covers 16 days
ESM says remaining volume from an earlier call was folded into the new tender; current stockpile covers about 16 days of operation.
State power company ESM has opened a new annual tender seeking 600,000 tonnes of coal for supply to REK Bitola, days after completing a separate purchase of 350,000 tonnes. The utility says the fresh call follows market signals and is intended to secure more favourable contracting conditions when possible.
ESM’s previous annual tender was closed early and did not run to full volume: about 96,000 tonnes remained unused. Because offers must meet a minimum lot size of 100,000 tonnes to be considered, the company moved the leftover coal volume into the new announcement and closed the earlier procurement, ESM representatives said.
Current stocks and short-term needs
ESM reports roughly 97,000 tonnes are currently kept at the plant stockpile, a reserve the company estimates is sufficient for about 16 days of operation at current burn rates. The operator also stated that extraction at the Suvo Dol mine will be reduced for four weeks, but that domestic production combined with contracted deliveries will cover needs.
According to ESM, REK Bitola is scheduled to run with a single thermal unit in August. The plant’s daily coal requirement in that regime is about 6,000 tonnes, which the company says will be met from mined volumes supplemented by supplier shipments under standing contracts.
Earlier this year ESM bought 350,000 tonnes of coal for REK Bitola in a procurement that cost in excess of 18 million euros. Part of that coal is to be delivered by Greek firm Protergia Energy, while a newcomer on the market, Energy Max—established in 2022 and noted to have employed just two people last year—is also in play as a potential supplier.
After a year that saw the lowest output in over a decade, ESM has set an ambitious target for electricity production in the coming period. The company expects domestic thermal power plants to produce slightly more than 4,300 gigawatt‑hours, a level not reached for roughly six years.
By Irena Chachkova
Photo: press material from the event
