The Spreča farm in Donji Dubrava near Kalesija is the first farm in the Federation of BiH, which started producing electricity from renewable energy sources, more precisely from agricultural biomass. During the production process, corn silage, beef manure and chicken manure are used as raw materials. The effects are already visible, and the BHRT team checked whether the future lies in this source of energy.
The largest farm in Bosnia and Herzegovina, whose primary production is milk production, has been receiving electricity from agricultural mass for almost a year. This biogas is obtained through different raw materials, chicken and beef manure, corn silage. It is a long-term project in which approximately 7 million marks have been invested over the past years.
SAID KARIĆ, director of Spreča Farm
“The capacity of each plant, and there are four of them in total, is 150 kilowatt hours. Another important fact is that 8,000 hours per year are planned, which is an advantage compared to other types of renewable energy sources such as solar, because they have fewer working hours. ”
In addition to electricity, thermal energy is also produced from biomass at the Spreča farm. Since there is more of it than electricity, there is already a visionary idea of channeling it into greenhouse production.
SAID KARIĆ, director of Spreča Farm
“This is the first plant in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and our country is a signatory to various directives that oblige it to produce more energy in the future in its overall balance of electricity production.”
Mirsad Tursunović is the first biogas engineer in BiH. The opportunity to focus all his knowledge on new technologies and methods of electricity production contributed to his still only visionary thinking.
MIRSAD TURSUNOVIĆ, manager of the biogas plant in Spreča farm
“We can use restaurant waste. This is food that would be thrown into containers and thus fill landfills, here it can be used for biogas production. Also, expired food, juices, jams. All bakery products can be used for the production of biogas. In the future, we are certainly planning to enter into contracts regarding the storage of those products, but the legal regulations are holding us back.”
Although the economic benefits can be huge, for now due to certain brakes within the institutions, the Spreča farm is forced to produce energy at only 50 percent of the total capacity and they are forced to work at a much lower price. However, they hope that they will emerge victorious from this fight with the not at all simple system in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and that is why their support is essential.
SAID KARIĆ, director of Spreča Farm
“Getting closer to those European flows and the EU itself, it is certain that agriculture in Bosnia and Herzegovina will suffer a lot of blows. Every day in which we do not fight for survival is a danger. So we behave accordingly, and this plant, this access and enthusiasm is just a struggle for survival.”
In this uncertain time of the global energy crisis, Farma Spreča can certainly be an example to others because these young and educated people, following European standards, are not afraid of challenges, but create new values and show that it is very possible in Bosnia and Herzegovina, BHRT writes.
