Tešanj’s “Madi” installs one of the largest solar power plants in BiH, with the support of the European Union

Tešanj-based Madi, as one of the leaders in the food industry in Bosnia and Herzegovina, now owns the largest solar power plant intended for its own needs. Assistance in the implementation of this project vital not only for Madi, but also the wider community, came through the EU4AGRI project.

“When we faced problems with procurement during the pandemic, we realised how important our independence is and how important it is that the resources we use come from BiH,” said Emina Salkičević-Dizdarević, Marketing and General Affairs Director with the Madi company.

For more than two decades, the Madi company has been operating in processing and production of various meat products according to the highest standards. Today, it is recognised as the absolute leader in the Bosnian market, and it is one of the few companies licensed to export fresh chicken meat to the European Union market.

The quality of the production and distribution process to its end users is in the hands of the army of Madi’s employees – some 630 of them are employed directly in this company and more than 500 cooperate through subcontractor farms.

Uncertainty caused by the global pandemic and hampered work processes were an additional incentive for the company to embark on a new investment, a one of a kind in BiH.

“It is about building a plant for the production of electricity through solar energy. This plant was made exclusively for our needs and is the largest project in BiH for this purpose,” explains Ermina.

Solar panels are installed on an area of ​​5,500 square meters and allow for the production of electricity for Madi, sufficient to cover for about 15 percent of its total consumption. This will help the company reduce its costs, ensure a smooth production process, but also a certain level of self-sustainability.

“We are major electricity consumers and this investment is of great importance for us, especially given the announced increase in the price of electricity for businesses. The contribution of this investment is huge, not only economically for us who will be using that power plant, but also for the environment,” explains Ermina.

Investing in renewable energy is one in a series of Madi’s efforts to improve its work processes, while taking care of the environmental preservation and protection by reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

According to the current estimate, Madi will produce 1147 MWh of electricity annually through its solar panels, which will directly contribute to the reduction of CO2 emissions by about 900 tons.

In Madi they do not hide their satisfaction with the implemented project, and announce new investments in order to further reduce their costs and contribute to environmental protection.

“Having seen all the advantages of this project, we decided to expand the plant. We will invest own additional funds in the increase by another 1 MWh of solar energy. In this way, we will produce about 30 percent of our energy from our own sources. We are very environmentally aware as a company and this is one of the steps we wish to take to contribute to our wider community,” adds Ermina.

Construction of the solar power plant was supported through the EU4AGRI project in the amount of BAM 300,000, while the value of the investment totalled to BAM 600,000.

Currently, the EU-funded EU4AGRI project has a public call open for the award of grants for investments in processing capacities and marketing of agri-food products in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Through this Public Call, the European Union will support investments in processing capacities of the agri-food industry by introducing innovations and developing new and/or improving existing products, marketing tools, and ensuring business continuity and a safe and healthy working environment in BiH.

The deadline for applications is 7 June 2022. More information available through our website www.eu4agri.ba or via LINK.

The EU4AGRI project is a four-year initiative (2020-2024) aimed at modernising the agri-food sector, generating new jobs, as well as retaining the existing ones and supporting recovery from the COVID-19 crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The total value of the project, funded by the European Union, is EUR 20.25 million. The project is jointly implemented and co-financed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in BiH and the Czech Development Agency (CzDA).

The EU4AGRI project has so far supported 45 investments of BiH farmers and companies with investments with a total value of EUR 10.7 million, of which BAM 6.3 million was financed by the EU.