In the last week of June, the WEBG Company organized the Open Doors Days introducing the start of Čibuk 1 windfarm construction. The Open Doors Days were organized in four Local Communities surrounding the location of Čibuk 1 Windfarm i.e. in Mramorak, Dolovo, Bavanište and Vladimirovac. The residents who attended these meetings were especially interested for the road network and the construction schedule. They also had questions about use of land, about compensation for possible damages caused during the windfarm construction and about the possibilities of employment for the locals.
The construction of nearly 60 km long road network is planned to start with an 11km long section of the main transport road. This road requires a cement stabilization so that trucks hauling heavy loads can safely reach the site on which the wind generators will be erected. This road remains a public property so that all residents are free to use it. The road will have a 4.5m long traffic lane with 35cm side tracks serving as gutters. From this main road all accession roads will be leading to every site on which a wind turbine will be erected.
The complex with a substation and the command and operational building will be built together with a 10.8 km long-distance high voltage transmission line before erection of each turbine. All cables transmitting electricity from the wind-generator to the long-distance power line would lie 1.2m underground in the concrete casings.
As per current schedule all works should be completed within 18 months from the beginning of construction. The wind turbines will be erected within a period of 19 weeks which means erection of three wind turbines per week. After the construction of the first seven windmills, the first power circle will be put into operation. The complete windfarm is expected to fully operate after eight power circles.
All possible damages on the private land will be compensated. For the temporarily occupied lots the compensation will be paid annually and after the completed works these lots will be fully restored to their original form.
Each Local Community will have at disposal the copies of Complaint Forms, which is an official document intended for citizens who want to register possible damage, noise or anything that may interfere with everyday life of local people.
In the last several years, to 2016 inclusive, the WEBG donated nearly € 80,000 to the Local Communities connected with the windfarm construction. As from this year donations will be used to pay scholarships for local students of ecology, ornithology and similar studies. It is planned to engage these students to monitor migrations of birds and bats, which is obligatory during three first years from the beginning of the windfarm operation.
The residents of Mramorak had a special interest for a possible employment of local people during construction of the windfarm, which is in accord with the contract signed between the Kovin Local Community and the WEBG company. Currently, the contractor is working on estimations about a number of workers that may be required during a two-year construction period taking into account the duration of construction and necessary qualifications.
The interest of residents who attended meeting in Mramorak was mostly focused on distribution of profit from the sold electricity. The investor guarantees to the Kovin Local Community 2% of net profit at the annual level, from which 0.5% is assigned to the Mramorak Community. This revenue should be used to support projects important for the community.
In Dolovo the discussion was mostly concentrated on the compensation for possible damages and the way in which such damagea would be estimated.
In the case of registered damage a chartered surveyor will inspect the parcel in question and an authorized court expert would estimate the damage. On the basis of this estimation, the amount of compensation will be decided and paid in full by the WEBG Company.
Before the construction begins all roads to be used for transport of material and equipment will be photographed and the contractor will be obliged to repair the damage after the end of construction and to return the roads into their original condition.
During the road construction, all sections of it will be secured and transport will continue during the whole process so that resident will be able to reach their lands.
The lots that are bought out for erection of wind generators will be inaccessible during works (construction of foundation, rising of pillars and installation of blades) due to security.
At request of citizens, the basic information about construction of the Cibuk 1 windfarm were reread: the main investor is the WEBG company and the contractor is the German company General Electric. The windfarm will have 57 wind turbines and the total value of the project amounts to € 300,000.000. The lifespan of windfarm has been estimated to 25 years.
The residents of Vladimirovac showed interest for the full timetable of works from the beginning to the end of windfarm construction and for transportation of parts for wind turbines. The parts for pillars and blades of windturbines will be transported from the Pancevo Port to Vladimirovac, from where the trucks will drive on to the main transport road and then transfer the parts of wind generators to all sites on which they will be erected or, if necessary, to the main depot.
The main transport road will shorten for some 30 km driving to Kovin and Smederevo, which is also important for the citizens of Vladimirovac and other places.
In Vladimirovac two of four railway crossings, which will serve as crossings during transportation of windturbines, will be completely reconstructed. The reconstruction will also include field lanes.
The meeting in Vladimirovac was attended by the representatives of the sub-contractor, the Portuguese CJR Company.