Belgrade Launches Phase 3 Geothermal Study Tender for District Heating

JKP Beogradske elektrane, has launched a new tender for the third phase of scientific studies into the geothermal potential of underground water resources at sites within its heating-plant and boiler-house network. 

The procurement is for services, uses an open procedure, and carries reference number 160 ОУ/26. The submission deadline is 19 October 2026 at 10:30, and the tender status is listed as published. 

This procurement is significant because it shows that the city’s geothermal program is moving beyond preliminary exploration and into a more detailed assessment phase. The tender documentation indicates that the work is intended to support the evaluation of geothermal resources for district heating use, which aligns with broader efforts to reduce reliance on fossil fuels in urban heating systems. 

What the Tender Covers

The procurement title is “Phase 3 scientific study of the geothermal potential of underground water resources in the territory of heating plants and boiler houses in the composition of JKP Beogradske elektrane.” The notice identifies the contracting authority as the public utility company Beogradske elektrane, located in the Belgrade region, Novi Beograd. The subject of procurement is services, rather than works or goods, which means the successful bidder will be expected to deliver technical and scientific outputs rather than construction. 

The public notice lists the tender under 2026/C F05-0006019. Available documents include technical specifications, a price structure form, contract-award criteria, and a contract model. That combination suggests a structured consulting or research assignment with clearly defined deliverables and evaluation rules. 

The documentation uploaded to the portal also shows that the tender has been active since 19 September 2026 at 00:17. That timing indicates the city utility is moving on a defined schedule, likely to keep the geothermal program on track for follow-on technical work. 

Why It Matters

Geothermal district heating is one of the most practical ways for cities to cut emissions in the heating sector, especially where networks already exist and can absorb new heat sources. Belgrade’s interest in underground water resources is therefore strategically important, because it offers a path toward lower-carbon heat without requiring a complete redesign of the district-heating system. 

The broader logic is simple: if subsurface water resources can provide dependable heat at useful temperatures and flow rates, they can partially displace natural gas, fuel oil, and electricity in heating plants. Beogradske elektrane’s earlier stated objective was to identify ways to reduce the use of those key energy sources and move toward a less carbon-intensive district-heating model. 

The new tender suggests that the city is still building the technical evidence base needed before any larger investment decision can be made. In geothermal projects, that evidence is crucial because the economics depend heavily on reservoir temperature, flow rate, chemistry, drilling depth, reinjection strategy, and the proximity of heat demand. 

How the Program Has Evolved

This latest notice fits into a longer sequence of geothermal exploration activities in Belgrade. Earlier reporting described the Phase 3 study as part of a broader campaign launched in 2023, with the work intended to refine the geothermal resource model and identify the most promising locations for future development. 

At that earlier stage, the focus was on detailed geoscientific studies at selected sites in Belgrade, with the results expected to support a conceptual resource model and a prognosis for exploitation. The current tender appears to continue that same trajectory, taking the project from concept refinement toward more actionable site-level analysis. 

The geography of the effort has also shifted over time as the utility refined its priorities. Supporting coverage from 2024 and 2026 shows that the program has centered on different district-heating sites, reflecting an iterative approach to screening and prioritization. 

Site Selection and Scope

The tender notice itself does not provide all technical site details in the public summary, but external reporting indicates that the study is linked to heating-plant and boiler-house locations in Beogradske elektrane’s system. Previous coverage has referred to sites such as Batajnica, Borča, Dunav, Novi Beograd, and Miljakovac in discussions of the broader exploration program. 

That matters because geothermal exploration in a district-heating context is usually constrained by both geology and infrastructure. A technically attractive resource still needs to be close enough to heat users and network assets to make the project commercially relevant, while also fitting operational constraints around drilling, well testing, and integration with existing heat plants. 

The “scientific study” framing implies that the contractor will likely be asked to process geological, geophysical, hydrogeological, and possibly thermal data to assess resource potential. In practical terms, that means identifying the most promising subsurface targets, estimating likely heat extraction performance, and determining whether any site could support pilot development. 

Tender Conditions

Public reporting on earlier phases of the program indicates that Beogradske elektrane has favored bidders with scientific-research credentials and solid financial capacity. In the 2022 notice, bidders were required to be registered scientific research organizations with at least RSD 60 million in total operating revenues and no net loss in the previous three financial years.

Although the current tender summary does not repeat all eligibility requirements in the portal excerpt, the presence of detailed technical documents and award criteria suggests that the contracting authority is likely seeking a specialized research institution or consortium. That would be consistent with the technical complexity of geothermal resource assessment and the need for credible scientific outputs. 

The open-procedure format also means the competition should be accessible to qualified bidders that can meet the documentation and technical standards. For a project of this type, the winner will probably be selected on a combination of price, methodology, experience, and compliance with the tender criteria. 

A Deeper District-Heating Signal

Belgrade’s geothermal tender is not an isolated event. It reflects a wider trend across European district-heating systems, where operators are searching for local low-carbon heat sources that can improve security of supply and reduce exposure to fuel-price volatility. Geothermal energy is especially appealing in cities with centralized networks because it can provide continuous, dispatchable heat rather than intermittent output.

That is one reason why exploratory studies matter so much. They are the bridge between ambition and investment, turning a general interest in geothermal heating into a bankable project pipeline. Without that technical foundation, city utilities cannot responsibly commit to expensive drilling campaigns or infrastructure upgrades. 

Belgrade’s approach also reflects a phased-risk model that is common in geothermal development. First comes desktop screening and broad geological analysis, then more detailed studies, and only after that does the industry move toward exploratory drilling and pilot implementation. The current tender sits squarely in that middle stage. 

 What Comes Next

The immediate next milestone is the bid deadline on 19 October 2026. Once bids are submitted and evaluated, the utility can select a contractor to carry out the Phase 3 work and advance the resource assessment. 

If the study confirms viable geothermal conditions at one or more sites, the project could then move toward exploration drilling or pilot-scale development. That would be a major step for Belgrade, because it could put local geothermal heat closer to practical deployment in district heating. 

For now, the tender shows that the city is still investing in the technical groundwork required for a geothermal transition. In a sector where subsurface uncertainty is often the biggest barrier, that kind of methodical approach is usually the difference between a promising idea and a real project. 

Bidders can bid here 

Source: jn portal