For Sinisa Mali, EPS is the locomotive of the country's development: "Privatization is out of the question"

Sinisa Mali / Foto: Tanjug/Vladimir Sporcic

Minister of Finance Sinisa Mali was on RTS this morning and on that occasion announced the strategy for the development of EPS (the state-owned electric power company) by the end of May.

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Mali said that "EPS privatization is out of the question" and that the company must be the real engine of Serbia's development. He pointed out that the war in Ukraine showed all the shortcomings of the energy system in Europe.

"The two-week talks with the representatives of the IMF as part of the first revision of the current standby arrangement with Serbia, which is implemented since December 2022, have been completed. It was assessed that the Serbian economy showed resilience in very unfavorable conditions, that the macroeconomic results within the program are excellent and that the program of structural reforms is progressing well," said the minister, RTS reports.

Such assessment, he added, is also a condition for the IMF's Board of Directors to approve the first revision of the arrangement in June. The fund, however, suggested that in the coming period, a combination of policies to curb inflation, crisis reserves, restructuring of public companies, as well as fiscal space for additional public investments are all necessary.

An important part of the arrangement with the fund, but also a priority of the Government, is the restructuring of the energy sector, Mali further stressed.

"Last year, when the conflict started in Ukraine, it was clear how important a strong energy sector is. We are coming out with a project by the end of May, about what we need to invest in."

According to him, by 2030, a large part of energy production should come from renewable sources.

On April 4, a new statute of EPS was adopted, namely that it will in the future be a closed joint-stock company 100 percent owned by the state.

(Telegraf Biznis)