DTEK has reached an agreement with the international company HC Trading (Heidelberg Cement Group) on the additional supply of one shipload of 60,000 tonnes of American coal to Ukraine in addition to the two shiploads already contracted on September 16 with a total volume of 150,000 tonnes, DTEK Energy said on Facebook.
“Despite the fact that the whole world faced an acute shortage and record prices for energy resources, DTEK Energy, as a reliable and responsible company, does everything possible to ensure that there is enough coal in Ukraine in winter,” CEO of DTEK Energy Ildar Saleev said.
It is expected that an additional supply of 60,000 tonnes of coal will arrive in Ukraine in November. In turn, the previously contracted coal from the United States in the amount of 150,000 tonnes should be delivered to Ukraine in two shiploads in December 2021 and January 2022.
DTEK Energy and PJSC Centrenergo in August also agreed to supply 75,000 tonnes of steam coal from the United States, which they will divide equally upon arrival. The supply of American coal from Hamilton mine US will be carried out through the international trader Trafigura.
“In addition, for the third month in a row, the company has been importing coal from Poland (two agreements have been signed for the supply of a total of 340,000 tonnes of coal), as well as Kazakhstan,” DTEK Energy said.
In total, as of October 21 and during September-October, the company imported more than 278,000 tonnes of coal to Ukraine.
Over the nine months of 2021, DTEK Energy has allocated almost UAH 1.7 billion for the repair campaign of thermal power plant (TPP) units, station equipment, buildings and structures, the company’s press service said.
According to its data, power engineers have implemented 23 out of 28 planned (including additional) repairs of power units of thermal power plants this year. In particular, 82% of the planned volume of the repair campaign has been completed. The work was carried out at the blocks of Kryvy Rih, Prydniprovska, Zaporizhia, Kurakhove, Luhansk, Burshtyn, Dobrotvirska and Ladyzhin TPPs.
Five unit repairs are underway at Zaporizhia, Kurakhove, Luhansk, Dobrotvirska and Ladyzhin TPPs. By the end of the year, it is planned to implement one more scheduled repair of power units at Burshtyn TPP.
“The task of each participant in the energy market is to do everything in his power to prepare for winter. DTEK Energy’s maneuver capacities have repeatedly supported the Ukrainian energy system, operating at maximum and smoothing out peak periods of electricity consumption. This is especially important during the heating season. Despite the difficult situation on the market, we are investing in the repair of equipment at thermal power plants in order to minimize any interruptions in operation and ensure the stable operation of TPPs, and with them the entire energy system,” CEO of the company Ildar Saleev said.
DTEK Energy Holding plans to build its second energy storage system with a capacity of 50 MW next year, DTEK Executive Director Dmytro Sakharuk said.
“Now we are considering another 50 MW project, which we will build, I hope, next year,” Sakharuk said during the Kyiv International Forum.
At the same time, he noted that the first 1 MW energy storage system of the company, launched in May of this year, took part in the market of auxiliary services for the first time this week, having worked on it for a day.
“This week we’ve rendered services for the first time – our battery storage worked for 24 hours on the market,” Sakharuk said.
As reported, at the end of September, Ukrenergo certified the energy storage system at Zaporizhia TPP (PJSC DTEK Dniproenergo) with a capacity of ± 1 MW to participate in the market of auxiliary services, which happened for the first time in Ukraine.
DTEK launched an industrial energy storage system of the American company Honeywell with a capacity of 1 MW and a capacity of 2.25 MWh at the site of DTEK Zaporizhia TPP in Energodar on May 20 this year.
DTEK Energy received a net loss of UAH 327 million in January-March 2021, which is almost 23 times better than in the first quarter of 2020 and is mainly due to the strengthening of the hryvnia exchange rate.
According to the company’s report, positive exchange rate differences in January-March this year amounted to UAH 793 million against negative UAH 6.163 billion in January-March last year.
The company’s revenue for the reporting period increased by 12.8%, to UAH 14.42 billion.
The company explained that its growth was mainly due to an increase in the volume of electricity supply by 44% compared to the first quarter of 2020, when artificial restrictions for producers were in force.
In 2021, DTEK Energo intends to allocate UAH 2.3 billion for current, medium and overhaul repairs of power units of its TPPs, the press service of the company said.
“This will reduce the accident rate of equipment, which was observed in this heating season due to the very high load at TPPs, and ensure stable operation in the power system,” the company said.
In March, four power units out of 29 planned for 2021 have already entered scheduled repairs. The task of workers of repair enterprises and power engineers of Burshtynska, Dobrotvorska, Kurakhivska and Luhanska TPPs is to repair technological and electrical equipment, heating surfaces of boilers, on which fistulas often appear, and also to diagnose metal structures.
In the spring, DTEK Energo is planning another seven ongoing and one major overhaul at its TPPs.
According to DTEK Energy CEO Ildar Saleev, due to the fact that the peak of the heating season in 2020/2021 has already passed, the load on the units has decreased and there is no need to work with a full set of equipment, the company has started a repair campaign to prepare for next winter.
“This winter has once again shown the need for shunting thermal generation by DTEK, which again lent a shoulder to the power system. The load of this heating season was 50% higher than the previous one, as well as, unfortunately, the accident rate. Due to the repair of the nuclear power plant, our stations worked with their full complement and promptly responded to the needs of the power system. If one power unit went into emergency repair, then we quickly compensated for the need by launching another,” he said.
At the same time, Saleev said that in order to stop the trend of accidents, it is necessary to stabilize the situation on the energy market, solve the problem of accumulated debts, and provide financial opportunities for generating facilities for repairs.
DTEK Energo is an operating company responsible for coal mining and power generation in the structure of the DTEK holding.
In January-February, DTEK lost UAH 1 billion in profit due to underproduction of electricity due to the coal shortage, Head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Energy and Housing and Utility Services Andriy Gerus (Servant of the People faction) said.
According to the MP, out of 777 million kWh of total electricity imports to Ukraine in January-February, DTEK could independently generate at least 500 million kWh, which required 250,000 tonnes of coal.
“Taking into account the premium electricity prices in January-February, this means a profit of at least UAH 250 million. However, this profit was not earned due to the coal shortage,” Gerus said.
In January-February, DTEK actually suspended exports of electricity to the EU, which meant an underproduction of another 800 million kWh (for which 400,000 tonnes of coal were needed), and it is a shortfall of about another UAH 800 million, Gerus said.
“Thus, in order to produce the necessary electricity for the needs of Ukraine and for export, DTEK needed 650,000 tonnes of coal. We remind you that the company’s accounts in December had UAH 1.6 billion, which is the equivalent 800,000 tonnes of coal. In fact, the company lost about UAH 1 billion in profit, which it could have received in January-February, the market provided such opportunities,” the head of the parliamentary committee said.
As reported, the National Commission on State Regulation in Energy and Utilities (NEURC) at a meeting on March 10 fined DTEK Zakhidenergo, DTEK Dniproenergo and DTEK Skhidenergo for UAH 1.7 million each for failure to provide the guaranteed coal reserves at thermal power plants (TPPs) in winter, as well as untimely informing the Energy Ministry, NEURC and NPC Ukrenergo about a critical situation with fuel.
