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By BojanaVlajcic
01 Jul 2022
Decarbonisation plans in North Macedonia are taking a big leap forward. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is lending €25 million to ESM, the state-owned electricity company, to build a 30 MW photovoltaic (PV) project consisting of 10 MW on a portion of the exhausted coal mine of thermal power plant Oslomej, and 20 MW adjacent to the thermal power plant Bitola. The European Union (EU) is also supporting this development with a €5 million grant funded through the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF).
Andi Aranitasi, EBRD Head of North Macedonia, said: “This is a very important project for the country’s energy transition. It is a continuation of our previous work in backing the ambitious decarbonisation plans of North Macedonia by organising solar PV tenders and constructing the first-ever utility scale solar PV plant in the country. The project will help to address the need for energy security and sustainability in a competitive and affordable manner, through investments that will create high-quality jobs and new business ecosystems, while reducing air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.”
The new solar plants are an extension of the first 10 MW PV plant constructed on the exhausted coal mines in Oslomej and are evidence of ESM’s and the country’s decarbonisation pathway. Once operational, the new facilities will produce nearly 48 GWh of electricity a year – enough to power 10,000 homes and replace 44,000 tonnes of CO2 per year. The project will also support ESM’s efforts to rehabilitate the mine sites that used to supply the thermal power plants with coal.
Ambassador David Geer, Head of the EU Delegation to North Macedonia said: “We are seeing concrete actions in materialising the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans and in turning the Economic and Investment Plan into reality. The WBIF investment grant and the EBRD Loan, supporting the transformation of Oslomej and Bitola power plants from coal based to solar energy, represent a clear indication that the country is taking the right steps - moving to green energy, while implementing a socially just transition process. This investment was long overdue, and comes at the right time for North Macedonia, ensuring clean and secure energy supplies.”
The country, whose capital Skopje was recently named one of Europe’s most polluted cities, aims to source 38 per cent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030. Especially during the current energy crises, this operation will be one of the first projects to simultaneously address key just transition elements by moving towards clean energy use and energy security, while also introducing retraining and reskilling programmes to safeguard livelihoods, support regional development and create new economic opportunities.
ESM, a public electricity generation utility owned by the government of North Macedonia, provides 90 per cent of the country’s domestic electricity production – about 3,600 GWh from two thermal power plants and 1,250 GWh from eight hydropower plants. ESM also operates two combined heat and power facilities and the first wind farm in the country, producing about 100 GWh annually.
Furthermore, in favour of decarbonisation and meeting the country’s renewable energy target, in 2020 the EBRD provided technical assistance to support the regulatory and legal aspects of introducing renewable energy auctions in three renewable energy tenders for 162 MW combined solar PV capacity. These are the first tenders in the Western Balkan region to be developed with exposure to wholesale power prices, one on public and one on private land, while the third is a public-private partnership tender for 100 MW solar PV capacity on ESM’s former coal mine in Oslomej.
The EBRD Shareholder Special Fund (SSF) provided €75,000 for environmental and social due diligence, and €74,000 for the development of basic design and technical specifications for the plants. The EBRD will support ESM with a nationally accredited market-relevant curricula programme to define redeploying and retraining opportunities for a significant share of the affected local workforce, with an approximate budget of €200,000 to be funded from an international donor and SSF under the Gender and Economic Inclusion TC Framework.
To date, the EBRD has invested €2.3 billion in 161 projects in the economy of North Macedonia.
Skopje, 3 December 2023 (MIA) - North Macedonia today launched a just energy transition investment platform to guide its far-reaching plans for a low-carbon and just transition of the electricity sector. The platform represents a milestone for the historically coal-dependent country and highlights its ambition to Transform its energy sector and economy to a low-carbon, low-cost and secure paradigm.
The EBRD has been supporting the government in the development of the platform and will lead coordination with international partners.
The launch event at COP28, the climate summit in Dubai, was joined by the European Commission, Climate Investment Funds, the World Bank, International Finance Corporation, European Investment Bank, Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau, Council of Europe Development Bank as well as Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, who confirmed their support for North Macedonia''s ambition and the platform''s delivery, along with donor and philanthropic organisations, the EBRD said in a press release.
At the event, the Minister of Economy of North Macedonia, Kreshnik Bekteshi, set out the aims of the platform, a vehicle for investment and policy development bringing together government, international finance and the private sector. It will target the complete phase-out of coal-fired power, the deployment of 1.7 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2030, grid and storage investments for energy security and just transition measures to support communities affected by this transition.
This will reinforce North Macedonia''s existing commitment, as set out in its Nationally Determined Contribution, of reducing its net greenhouse gas emissions by 82 per cent by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. Because the electricity sector is so prominent in the country''s emissions profile, with coal historically accounting for over 40 per cent of generation, the energy transition is key to achieving this goal.
The green economy transition will bring net economic benefits, supporting North Macedonia in entering green value chains and increasing the competitiveness of its economy. However, coal-reliant regions may be impacted unevenly. To address this, the platform will support regional economic diversification and human capital development in line with its Just Transition Roadmap, supported by the European Union and EBRD.
Achieving the country''s vision will require substantial investments in the country, estimated at about €3 billion by 2030. These are expected to be mobilised primarily through the private sector by unlocking market barriers, in particular for renewable energy deployment via competitive auctions.
The platform will build on a successful collaboration with the Climate Investment Fund, which is considering providing up to US$ 85 million of grants and concessional finance for the coal affected regions, subject to its Trust Fund Committee''s approval of the Accelerated Coal Transition investment plan in February.
"Central to this collaboration is support for just transition emphasising the commitment to a transition that is not only economically viable but also socially just and inclusive, and incorporating mechanisms to address potential social and economic disparities resulting from the transition. Assistance for workers and communities impacted by the coal phase out, providing them access to new high-quality green jobs and provide localised solutions are one of our main priorities during this process," said Minister Bekteshi, who launched the programme side by side with EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso.
"We are very proud to be a partner of North Macedonia in this innovative country-led platform, which blends government commitment, international support and private finance to accelerate a just energy transition," said the EBRD''s President Renaud-Basso.
"We believe this is a model of how climate finance can be scaled up, in North Macedonia, the Western Balkans, and beyond, and we look forward to working closely with the government to support the delivery of these high ambitions."
The EBRD, a leader in climate finance whose modus operandi is to work systemically with countries to create an investment climate attractive to the private sector, is putting its long experience at the disposal of North Macedonia to support the forging of IFI and donor partnerships for this platform.
In doing so, EBRD intends to leverage its experience from its just transition initiative and its support for the energy pillar of Egypt''s Nexus for Food, Water and Energy (NWFE), which was launched last year at COP27 in Egypt and is already delivering significant investments with 1.8 gigawatts of wind and solar capacity signed in the past year.
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