Veolia Energie brings Třebovice power plant in Ostrava, Czechia, back online after flooding

Veolia Energie employees managed to bring the Třebovice power plant in Ostrava back online on Thursday evening after flooding. It had been shut down since 15 September. As of today, it is also resuming deliveries to industry. Veolia Energie informed the Czech News Agency (ČTK).

During the floods, water in the power plant complex rose to 120 centimetres, almost twice the level of the devastating floods that crippled the plant in 1997. „Yesterday (Thursday)’s restart and the start of deliveries today are positive news, above all for Ostrava’s industry, including Kunín Dairy and other companies based in the Martinov Industrial Park,“ the company said in a press release.

After the Třebovice power plant was shut down, Veolia Energie’s crisis team devised a way to heat Ostrava, so residents have had hot water and heating since last weekend. „However, the solution using backup sources had technological limitations and could meet only the needs of Ostrava households, not industry. Industrial customers have specific requirements for deliveries,“ the company said.

Kamil Vrbka, Veolia Energie’s regional director for Moravia, said that, for example, the process steam needed by Kunín Dairy for production must be within a precise temperature range, with minimal deviation, and this can only be ensured while the Třebovice power plant is operating. „Nothing is changing for Ostrava households. They continue to receive high-quality, full supplies of heat and hot water. The only difference is that, as of today, these are coming directly from the Třebovice power plant rather than from backup sources. Bringing the power plant back online was absolutely crucial for industrial customers in Ostrava,“ Vrbka said.

He said there had been a huge improvement since the 1997 floods. „Back then, it took us three weeks to restore operations. This year, just 11 days. Preventive measures were key, protecting sensitive equipment—especially electric motors—from the rising water,“ the director said.

Another decisive factor, he said, was cooperation with members of the Integrated Rescue System (IZS). „They were here with us day and night. While we were clearing water from the site, firefighters pumped it out continuously for three days from as many as nine locations. Operations were practically nonstop. We had dozens of our own employees here and brought in people and equipment from across the country, but we could not have managed it so quickly on our own. Support from the city, the region and the IZS was crucial to restarting the power plant quickly, and it will be just as crucial in restoring operations in Krnov,“ Vrbka said.

Veolia Energie supplies heat and hot water to 580,000 households, institutions and businesses. It operates in the Moravian-Silesian, Olomouc, South Bohemian, Plzeň, Karlovy Vary, Ústí nad Labem, Liberec and Central Bohemian regions, as well as in Prague.