Erste Group Bank and Erste Bank Podgorica required government approval for a €50 million loan to Montenegro’s state-owned power utility EPCG to cover electricity purchases after the Pljevlja Thermal Power Plant (TPP) outage, according to the Action for Social Justice (ASP).
EPCG’s executive director submitted a request to the Ministry of Energy on 16 June seeking consent for the borrowing. The EPCG board had previously reviewed and approved entering negotiations with banks for refinancing electricity purchase contracts for 2025. Offers from commercial banks were assessed, and Erste Group Bank and Erste Bank Podgorica were selected as the most favorable.
The loan terms included a 3-month Euribor rate plus 1.60% margin, a 48-month repayment period, and a 12-month grace period. The Montenegrin government granted approval in early July, though detailed conditions were not publicly disclosed.
EPCG projected that average electricity prices of around €100 per MWh would result in a total cost of roughly €70 million for the missing electricity. The company anticipated significant monthly financial losses due to the TE outage, with deficits estimated at €8 million in June, €13.3 million in July, €22 million in August, €22.6 million in September, €15.9 million in October, and €4.2 million in November.
