Serbia’s opposition party Srbija Centar (SRCE) has accused President Aleksandar Vučić of exaggerating the risk that the Pančevo Oil Refinery could be forced to suspend operations because of the extremely low water level of the Danube.
Goran Đukić, head of SRCE’s Energy and Mining Committee, said that while a shutdown of the refinery could technically occur under certain circumstances, it was not a realistic scenario under current conditions.
“At this moment, the refinery’s operations are much more sensitive to a potential shortage or reduction in electricity supplies than to the low water level of the Danube,” Đukić told Danas.
He said the refinery was unlikely to stop operating simply because the Danube had fallen to exceptionally low levels and affected the availability of water needed for cooling.
According to Đukić, only officials at Serbia’s state-owned oil company Naftna industrija Srbije (NIS) can determine what Danube water level would represent a critical threshold for the Pančevo refinery’s operations.
He argued that NIS should also publicly clarify whether its facilities are technically prepared to maintain stable refinery operations under current conditions and in light of weather forecasts predicting continued high temperatures and limited rainfall.
“That is where the answer to the question of whether Vučić’s statement is exaggerated actually lies,” Đukić said, according to SRCE.
Vučić warned on Sunday that Serbia was facing serious energy challenges due to drought and oil market conditions, expressing concern that the Pančevo refinery might have to halt operations.
Speaking near a memorial dedicated to victims of Croatia’s 1995 Operation Storm, Vučić said the refinery was already facing problems because of insufficient water supplies.
“I hope we will not have to shut down the refinery in Pančevo. In two or three days, the Danube will no longer be navigable,” Vučić said.
The dispute comes as record-low water levels on the Danube continue to affect energy infrastructure across the region, with Serbia, Hungary and Romania facing mounting pressure on power generation and industrial operations amid an ongoing heatwave and severe drought.
