At the end of 2015, the new modern thermal power plant in Stanari, near Doboj, will be put into test operation. Investment worth over 560 million EUR represents the most important energy facility built in RS and Bosnia and Herzegovina in the last 30 years.
In the years when investors become more sensitive to all kinds of risk and when they do not hide their concerns due to global slowdown of the economic growth and decline of the global investing, the company of EFT Mine and Thermal Power Plant Stanari resists challenges of such large investment.
EFT Mine and Thermal Power Plant Stanari is a member of EFT Group which is engaged in trade and investment in the energy sector, particularly in Western, Central and Eastern Europe.
The professional team which leads Stanari Project don’t hide their satisfaction with implementation of set tasks. Since 2005 till today, 250 million EUR were invested in projects in Stanari. Total profit realized from the moment of the EFT coming in Stanari till today, is reinvested in the modernization of the mine and the construction of power plant.
They don’t hide satisfaction with the realization of the project, but neither their experience with the local community, ministries, institutions and population. Characteristically for countries in transition, where we belong, is that everything which is foreign initially encounters a rigid attitude. Today, the company employs 537 workers. Average salary is significantly above the average in RS, and visitors can testify the settlement of Stanari completely changed the look in the past few years.
In 2013, which is globally, but also in BiH was characterized by a decline in foreign investment of ten percent, EFT Group invested 145.2 million EUR in projects of Stanari, out of which 7.7 million in mine and 137.5 million in thermal power plant.
Within daily information speaking of the decline of the economic activity, increase unemployment and social demonstrations, the image of the site where hundreds of workers are working gives a positive signal and sends a message stressing that the company having a vision and a clear and transparent plans, may and must be successful. They also have permanent contacts with representatives of institutions of RS and Bosnia and Herzegovina and the local community. They are not unsatisfied with cooperation, but the administration must show more understanding for investments that are significant the budget charger. With the full capacity production expected in the second half of 2016, the company would have more than 900 employees.
Although offer of manpower in RS doesn’t fully meet needs of the company, they hope that competent institutions will pay more attention to the education of profiles seeking by the economy. The overproduction of highly educated staff of inadequate expertise and profiles cannot run economic development. Economic development also needs support of development banks.
The company is fully oriented to protection of the environment and it will work exclusively in accordance with the European regulations in force at the moment of putting into operation of the plant.
As part of their regular activities, representatives of the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency of BiH Jelica Grujic and Slavica Korica, together with representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of BiH Milenko Pandurevic and Predrag Milanovic visited EFT Mine and Thermal Power Plant Stanari on 29th April 2014.