General Director of North Macedonian state-owned power utility ESM Vlatko Kovacevski said that the company has already started it energy transition, specifically with coal-fired thermal power plant Oslomej.
Namely, ESM is currently building a 10 MW solar power plant at the location of the depleted coalmine, while preparing documentation for the construction of another solar plant at the same location.
Kovacevski stressed that the Oslomej solar power plant is a good example of energy transition, where the production capacities of fossil fuels are replaced by capacity that produces electricity from renewable sources. TPP Oslomej has not been in regular operation for years, mainly due to its inefficiency and the lack of coal, but now it sparked a chain of investments in renewable energy capacity on the location of the depleted coalmine.
He also said that ESM is committed to investments in renewable energy, adding that similar solar facilities will be built at the country’s largest coal- fired power plant Bitola, aimed as replacement capacity for one of its units. The company is also building solar power plants in Mavrovo, Tikves, Stip and Sveti Nikole, all with direct support from the Government.
Investments in renewable energy also include the expansion of Bogdanci wind farm, the construction of Miravci wind farm and the construction of hydropower plant Cebren, the most important project for the stability of the electricity system of North Macedonia.
