Head of the region Nikolai Shersnev and Minister of Energy Viktor Karankevich visited the Braslav peat briquette plant

Belarus is among the countries lacking their own fuel and energy resources. About 85% of them have to be imported from abroad, which makes its economy dependent on external suppliers. Therefore, the Ministry of Energy has been tasked with mobilizing the local fuel and raw material base. And the peat industry in the country, according to the ministry's assessment, is on the rise, holds a leading position in the world in the extraction of peat crumbs, and leads in terms of production volume of fuel briquettes. This is the result of the implementation of the state program "Peat", in which the Braslav peat briquette plant plays its role – the only one in the Vitebsk region today where fuel briquettes are produced. Having celebrated the 50th anniversary of its existence, the enterprise found itself in a difficult situation of moral and physical wear and tear of equipment. It could have been closed. But at the state level, it was decided to preserve the city-forming plant in Braslav region, and for this purpose, to reconstruct it. In fact, it was practically built anew, without interrupting the production process. In September 2018, large-scale work was completed. An enterprise equipped with the most modern equipment appeared in Braslav region.

All this was recalled during the meeting of the Minister of Energy Viktor Karankevich and the Chairman of the Regional Executive Committee Nikolai Shersnyov with the staff of the peat briquette plant. As a result of the reconstruction, the enterprise increased its production capacity from 30 to 40 thousand tons of briquettes per year and at the same time faced the problem of product sales. In this regard, the chairman of the regional executive committee drew the attention of the head of the Ministry of Energy to the need for a more active conversion of a number of boiler houses to peat, which will allow the residents of Braslav to significantly expand the geography of sales markets. In the Vitebsk region itself, this issue is being developed at "Dolomite" and the Obalsky brick factory. But besides them, Nikolai Shersnyov emphasized, it would be good to convert a number of small boiler houses, whose fuel demand can be easily met by the Braslav peat briquette plant. It's time to think about developing new types of products.

The regional executive committee has taken care of allocating fields for peat extraction. The reserves in the already developed areas will be sufficient for 15 years of stable operation of the enterprise, and the allocated ones – for 30-40 years. This year, Viktor Karankevich noted, the ministry plans to invest money specifically in the development of peat deposits, including in the Braslav region. And the Braslav residents are ready for a new step in the development of their enterprise.

Indeed, today's plant is fundamentally different from the former one. The team has appreciated the opportunities they have gained thanks to modern equipment and implemented technology. These were also demonstrated to the guests, giving them the opportunity to compare the old enterprise and the new one, albeit on stands and monitors.

In the control room, they were introduced to the implemented automated system for monitoring the technical process and the operation of each unit, which "reads" information for in-depth analysis of the reasons that affected product output and incurred costs.

The guests walked through the entire technological chain of briquette production, saw firsthand the working conditions of the workers, after which they met with the staff and answered questions that concerned the people. They asked the Minister of Energy about the prospects for the industry's development and their enterprise in particular. Referring to the All-Belarusian People's Congress, Viktor Karankevich spoke about the industry development programs developed for the coming years, where a significant place is given to the more active use of local fuel types, which means that the prospects for the Braslav peat briquette plant are also expanding. And they asked the chairman of the regional executive committee about the fate of rural areas and whether they have a future.

– Regions must live and develop, – replied Nikolai Sharsnev. – And the regional executive committee is taking measures for this. The same Braslav region, where the district center and the agro-town of Vidzy have significantly changed in recent years, is an example of this. The district awaits further changes in the improvement of settlements, improvement of working and living conditions for people. But for this, the local residents themselves must take care of their land, take care of personnel training, retention of young specialists, and much more that determines the well-being and comfort of life.

The conversation was sincere and friendly, when both sides heard and understood each other and were ready to work for the benefit of the entire society.

"Vitebskiye Vesti".