The Government of North Macedonia announced that the state-owned power utility ESM has put Oslomej solar power plant into trial operation.
The 10 MW solar power plant is built on the depleted Oslomej coalmine. It is expected to produce between 15 and 17 GWh of electricity per year, enough to cover the demand of some 2,800 households.
In 2019, state-owned power utility ESM successfully held the tender for the construction of 10 MW solar power plant in Oslomej, a project partially funded by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). In November 2019, ESM and Turkish company Girisim Elektrik have signed an agreement on the construction of the solar power plant, which started in late 2020.
The project was supported with a 5.9 million euros loan provided by the EBRD, as well as a grant of 1.6 million euros from bilateral donors to the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF).
Last June, The Government that it has signed contracts with Bulgarian company Solarpro Holding and Turkish company Fortim Energy Electric for the construction of 100 MW Oslomej solar power plant, a project worth 70 million euros.
Each company will build 50 MW solar power plant in public-private partnership with state-owned power utility ESM. Under the partnership, ESM will receive 18.5 % of electricity produced by Solarpro’s plant and 18.1 % of electricity produced by Fortim’s plant. ESM will provide the land on which the plants will be built. The agreement is valid for 35 years, after which the solar parks will be transferred to ESM. The plants will be built on the site of depleted Oslomej coalmine and its worth is estimated to 80 million euros.
