Zijad Bajramović, President of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Committee of the International Council on Large Electric Systems (CIGRE), said that more than 700 million euros must be invested in the country’s electricity distribution networks by 2030.
He noted that the rapid growth of renewable energy is already causing congestion in transmission and distribution systems, a challenge seen across the region. Additional pressure on the grid is expected from the electrification of transport and the growing electricity demand for heating and cooling.
Bosnia and Herzegovina will need to build new 110 kV substations, complete the shift to the 20 kV voltage level, and ensure supply quality. It will also have to integrate prosumers, especially households that both consume and produce electricity via rooftop solar panels.
Large-scale renewable integration brings challenges for balancing, voltage stability, and supply quality. Energy storage is considered a key solution to manage the mismatch between generation and consumption. Battery systems, in particular, can store excess power during low-demand periods and release it when demand rises. Calculations show that connecting 1,500 MW of solar and 1,000 MW of wind capacity to the transmission network would require 225 MW of battery capacity with 450 MWh of storage.
Bajramović also highlighted that distribution fees in some utilities have not been updated for over a decade. Increasing network charges could fund grid upgrades, the expansion to 20 kV, and the adoption of new technologies. He also emphasized the need for a grid-component fee that would require electricity producers to pay for using transmission and distribution infrastructure.
