Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning Izet Medziti has announced North Macedonia’s ambitious goal to eliminate coal from its energy sector by 2050 at the latest. He emphasized that achieving this target will require significant financial and technical support and called for a faster energy transition.
North Macedonia has already committed to closing its coal-fired power plants before the end of this decade. To support this transition, the country launched its Investment Platform for a Just Transition last year, aiming to raise three billion euros in private and public funding. However, Medziti recently suggested extending the deadline by twenty years, a proposal that has sparked controversy in local media.
The Minister has urged both the United States and the European Union to assist in accelerating North Macedonia’s energy transition. He assured that the country will adhere to the European Union’s deadlines for shifting to renewable energy sources, stressing the importance of robust support to meet the 2050 coal phase-out goal. The EU, meanwhile, plans to phase out coal by 2040 at the latest.
In 2020, Balkan nations, including North Macedonia, signed the Sofia Declaration on the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans, committing to full decarbonization by 2050 in alignment with EU goals. The EU is developing a strategy to end coal use at least ten years earlier than this commitment.
Across Europe, coal-fired power plants are either reducing production or closing ahead of schedule due to their outdated and inefficient nature. North Macedonia operates two coal-fired power plants, Bitola and Oslomej, which are part of the country’s efforts to transition away from coal.
