USAID Diaspora Invest project supports companies that produce various types of energy as a part of its grants program. The energy sector is one of the most developed sectors in Bosnia and Herzegovina with its long tradition and huge potential for new investments. This sector underwent major improvement during the time of Yugoslavia and as such represented one of the most important sources of income for the country. Even though it has a lot of potentials, the BiH energy sector today requires further investments to reach EU standards, primarily because of the global clean energy policies and old production facilities.
BiH is mostly energy independent because its coal reserves make over 65% of the country’s total energy consumption. Total coal reserves in BiH amount to 5,763 billion tons. Over 90% of coal reserves are used in thermal power plants for electric energy production.
Our country also possesses significant hydropower potential that amounts to 6000 MW. Studies show that BiH uses only 35% of its hydropower potential. Many investors expressed a strong interest in building both small and big hydroelectric power plants. The latest interest has been concentrated on renewable energy sources mostly because of the EU 2020 energy strategy.
BiH also has great potential for energy production based on wood residues – over 53% of BiH territory is covered in woods. Raw material sources are more than substantial for energy production out of biomass. This refers to around 1,5 million m3 of wood residue material from the wood processing industry.
Data shows that BiH territory has a significant quantity of solar radiation and above the European average with a very favourable seasonal timetable that opens the possibility of long term and efficient usage. Currently, in BiH, there are 150 little solar power plants but their role in the country’s total energy production is still minor.
Exploitation possibilities of geothermal resources are not yet enough researched or used. Total geothermal energy capacity in BiH amounts to 9, 25 MWt referring only to the heating.
Preliminary research shows possible oil and gas reserves in multiple areas around BiH (estimation shows around 50 million tons of oil reserves)
Source: Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Referring to data from LRC BIS – Business Intelligence Systema, we prepared an overview of one more industrial sector intending to motivate the investors to invest in it.
Number of companies in the last three years
In 2016, there were 305 energy production companies, while in 2018 that number was increased by 18, amounting to 323 companies in total.
Types of companies
From listed companies, 72.4% of companies have an income of half of million BAM, 15.8% of them have up to BAM 5 million and 11,8% of them have an income of more than BAM 5 million.
Number of employees and average salaries
The number of employees in the energy production industry experienced slow growth during recent years. The growth in 2017 totaled 249 employees while in 2018, it amounted to 198.
The average gross monthly salary in companies in the energy production industry is BAM 2,718.00 or EUR 1,390.00. This means that employees in the energy production industry are paid BAM 16 by the hour or EUR 8 by the hour.
| Labor costs | BAM | EUR |
| Total labor costs | 631,385,417 | 322,822,238[EZ1] |
| Number of employees | 19,356 | |
| Average annual gross salary per employee | 32,620 | 16,678 |
| Average monthly gross salary per employee | 2,718 | 1,390 |
| Daily wage per employee | 129 | 66 |
| Average hourly wage | 16 | 8 |
Monthly income per employee is BAM 18,011.00 or EUR 9,209.00. The average income per hour per employee is BAM 107 or EUR 55.
| Types of income | BAM | EUR |
| Annual income per employee | 216,129 | 110,505 |
| Monthly income per employee | 18,011 | 9,209 |
| Daily income per employee | 858 | 439 |
| Average hourly income per employee | 107 | 55 |
Income and export
Total sales income in the last three years experienced stable and constant growth. Income from sales that totaled 3 billion and BAM 669 million in 2016, increased in 2018 to 4 billion and BAM 183 million, which represents a significant growth of 14%.
Income from exports decreased by 74% in 2017 compared to 2016. But in 2018, it increased again by 112%
Top 20 companies by income
Top 10 companies share in total industry income
Total profit
Companies registered in the energy production sector in 2018 together achieved a total profit of BAM 84 million which represents a huge increase considering that the total profit in 2017 was not positive.
Top 10 companies share in total industry profit
