First section of Čibuk 2 wind park in Serbia begins trial operation

Masdar and Taaleri Energia generated the first megawatt-hours in their Čibuk 2 wind farm in Serbia. The first 35 MW out of the planned 154 MW is now in trial operation.

The installation of all 22 turbines in the Čibuk 2 wind power plant northeast of Belgrade is set to be completed by mid-November, Renewable Energy Sources of Serbia (RES Serbia) revealed. Trial operation of the first part began on October 21 and 35 MW has been connected to the grid so far, according to the update.

The entire wind farm will come online in early December, the association said. The project in the municipality of Kovin in the south Banat area is for 154 MW. The wind farm is between the villages of Bavanište and Mramorak.

Abu Dhabi Future Energy Co. – Masdar and Finland-based Taaleri Energia’s Taaleri SolarWind III Fund reached the financial close just 13 months ago. At the same time, special purpose vehicle (SPV) Čibuk 2 Wind Energy, a subsidiary of their joint venture Masdar Taaleri Generation, signed a power purchase agreement (PPA), as well as contracts on balancing and a market premium, with state-owned power utility Elektroprivreda Srbije (EPS).

UniCredit and Erste provided project financing, while Nordex is the equipment supplier.

The Čibuk 2 project secured a market premium at Serbia’s first wind power auction.

The facility is located next to the existing Čibuk 1 wind farm of 158 MW, the largest in Serbia. Masdar and Taaleri Energia commissioned it in 2019.