Several other factories throughout Serbia were also closed. Dragan Batalo, deputy general director of the Serbia's power grid, told Belgrade's Radio B92 that Serbia is no longer illegally importing electricity from neighbouring countries - meaning without paying for it. He also said, however, that the water level in Danube will soon be high enough for a restart of major power plant of Drmno, east of Belgrade. It was the only way for the system to stabilise. Mr Batalo called for rationing the country's dwindling electricity supplies and urged the public to show understanding and patience.
Officials cite several reasons for the energy shortage.
A summer drought and an abnormally mild winter have lowered water levels of the Danube and Sava Rivers, cutting back on hydroelectric production. Yugoslavia and other countries of the Balkans are tied together in a regional power grid, which allows them to import electricity from the other in times of need. The power grid was poorly maintained during the administration of ousted president Slobodan Milosevic, when the government was severely strapped for cash because of international sanctions imposed because of the ethnic wars in the Balkans. As a result, only about a third of the necessary maintenance was conducted on the network this year, officials admit. In addition, power stations were targeted during last year's Nato bombing campaign, launched to force Mr Milosevic to end his crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists in Kosovo.