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Again delays for Europe clocks due to Serbia-Kosovo dispute

Frequency deviation kept below 60 seconds, compensation ongoing

10 July, 17:42
(ANSA) - BELGRADE, 10 LUG - A complex political dispute between Serbia and Kosovo has again impacted on the European power network, slowing down Europe's digital clocks connected to the electric grid, the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E) said on Monday. The Continental European Power System, which includes 25 countries, is a synchronized and interconnected area, with a mean frequency of 50 Hz. Any deviation in the frequency has an impact on the digital clocks connected to the grid, which are steered by the frequency of the power system, affecting in particular clock radios and ovens. A frequency variation causes delays. This is what happened in March, when a power shortfall in Kosovo was not compensated by the Serbian network operator, delaying clocks in Europe by six minutes.

ENTSO-E said yesterday that the issue popped up again on July 6, but that a "compensation programme" was "automatically" launched when the grid time deviation exceeds 60 seconds.

However, "the cause for the frequency deviations - a political dispute between the Serb and Kosovar authorities on electricity - has not been solved, despite continuous efforts from the EU supported by ENTSO-E,", ENTSO-E said, adding that "sanctions", in particular against Serbia, are possible if a long-term solution is not found.

The problem originates in Kosovo, where the local transmission system operator (TSO) withdrew too much electricity from interconnected continental European system than they were injecting. "The Serbia TSO EMS is responsible for balancing" in the area "of Serbia (including Kosovo), Macedonia, and Montenegro" but has not done so, explained in emailed response Claire Camus, a ENTSO-E spokesperson.

The issue derives from a complex dispute between Serbia and Kosovo. "It is about the Serb population in Kosovo not paying bills to Kosovo authorities and the Kosovo regulator ending beginning of this year a solidarity mechanism by which the rest of the Kosovo population was paying for the Serb minority consumption. The TSO of Kosovo informed that they were therefore not able to purchase enough electricity to cover the Serb minority electricity and therefore were taking more MW on the interconnected continental European system than they were injecting," Camus explained. The issue may be solved by allowing the Kosovo TSO to connect the Continental European System, but political disputes between Belgrade and Pristina are delaying an agreement. (ANSA).

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