State-owned power utility EPS has announced that 2025 is set to record the lowest hydropower generation in the company’s history, as a result of two consecutive years of severe drought.
The decline is linked to significantly reduced precipitation across the Danube and Drina river basins. Over the past 18 months, rainfall and snowfall have been well below average in upstream countries, including Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro. While Serbia experienced occasional rainfall this year, it has not had a meaningful impact on water inflows to domestic hydropower plants.
By mid-2025, Serbia’s hydropower facilities had produced approximately 6.5 TWh of electricity. EPS projects total annual generation to reach around 8 TWh, falling short of the previous record low of 8.3 TWh recorded 36 years ago. Compared with recent years, this represents a sharp drop—roughly 25 percent below 2024 levels and nearly 40 percent lower than in 2023, when production reached 12.66 TWh.
Despite ongoing revitalization projects at major plants such as Đerdap 1, Bajina Bašta, and Zvornik, which have improved operational efficiency and readiness, low river inflows continue to restrict output. Hydropower generation depends entirely on available water, and both the Danube and Drina have recorded flows well below long-term averages in 2025. On the Danube, the average inflow since 2000 has been 5,257 cubic meters per second, but this year it dropped to just 3,822 cubic meters per second. The Drina shows a similar trend, with an inflow of only 239 cubic meters per second, nearly 100 cubic meters below the long-term mean. At times, water levels on the Danube fell so low that navigation became impossible.
EPS emphasized that careful reservoir management will be essential to maintain electricity supply stability during the upcoming winter. The company noted that while modernization efforts have maximized plant efficiency, hydrological conditions remain the key factor determining hydropower output.
