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August 14, 2025
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Worrying results of coal, overburden production in BiH’s power utility

Coal deliveries to thermal power plants in the first half of the year reached 73% of the plan, while only 43% of the overburden excavation target was achieved, warned Sanel Buljubašić, CEO of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s state-owned power utility Elektroprivreda Bosne i Hercegovine (EPBiH).

Increasing coal production is the only way to stabilize the energy system in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), Sanel Buljubašić told state news agency Fena. Focus.ba republished the report.

FBiH is one of the two entities making up BiH. The other one is the Republic of Srpska.

The chief executive pointed to the significance of coal, stressing that 80% of EPBiH’s production comes from coal power plants, with hydropower plants providing the remainder.

Of note, the company recorded a loss of BAM 45.47 million (EUR 23.25 million) for the first half of this year. BiH’s electricity imports were 4.5 times higher than in the same period of 2024.

Buljubašić: We will fulfill our obligations only if the mines fulfill theirs

Buljubašić recalled that the Government of FBiH raised the price of coal at the beginning of 2024 and signed a new collective agreement in the mining sector to demonstrate its commitment to improving working conditions for miners and their status.

The coal mines are operating under an entity called EPBiH Concern. They must produce the planned quantities of coal, which have been jointly agreed and contracted, the CEO underscored and added that EPBiH would meet its obligations only if the mines do the same.

Buljubašić said RMU Breza and RMU Đurđevik are facing the most pressing issues while that RU Kreka is making its best result of the past three years. Coal mine operators RU Kreka, RMU Kakanj, and RMU Abid Lolić have increased production, he added.

Of the nearly 5,000 workers, 1,226 are occupationally disabled

The company head said EPBiH Concern’s mines employ 4,967 workers, of whom 1,226 are occupationally disabled. Additionally, on average, between 1,500 and 1,700 employees are absent every day for various reasons, such as annual leave or sick leave.

In his words, restructuring would imply a program for surplus workers at RMU Zenica, closing mines that are technologically and economically unviable and continuing investments by procuring equipment for economically viable mines to increase productivity.

One of the main problems is the devastated coal deposits, a result of years of delay in overburden excavation, Buljubašić stressed.

Just transition includes mine shutdowns, installation of solar power, batteries, and the use of biomass

The just transition project in BiH’s coal regions, estimated at BAM 160 million (EUR 81.8 million), is being implemented with a World Bank loan. Most of the funds will be spent on closing mines and taking care of surplus employees of RMU Zenica, repurposing RU Kreka’s land, building the 12.2 MW Dubrave photovoltaic plant, repurposing the land of RMU Banovići and installing another solar power plant, of 15 MW, the CEO explained.

He pointed out that the authorities are preparing a law on the closure of Zenica mines — the first such legislation in BiH.

Green investments within a just transition platform for coal regions can include the construction of battery energy storage systems (BESS) and fast-growing biomass plantations, according to Buljubašić.

He announced that EPBiH would soon present its Prosumer 5000+ project and a long-term development plan for EPBiH for the period 2025-2050, within the energy sector development strategy.

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August 14, 2025
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Slovenia’s HESS inks 9.2 MW deal for two solar power plants near HPP Brežice

Hydropower plant operator Hidroelektrarne na Spodnji Savi will build two solar power plants with a combined capacity of 9.2 MW near its Brežice hydropower plant. It picked Končar as the contractor.

Two new photovoltaic facilities in the pipeline are the continuation of investments in solar near the Brežice hydropower plant. Hidroelektrarne na Spodnji Savi (HESS), owned by GEN and HSE, installed a 6 MW PV plant in May 2023 next to the reservoir of its HPP Brežice’s.

At the time, it was the largest in Slovenia, and it remains the largest hybrid system in the country.

The existing PV plant is FEBR-D3, while the two new ones are called FEBR-D1 and FEBR-D2.

“We’re excited to announce a new chapter in our collaboration with HESS,” Croatia-based Končar said.

Končar will install the two solar power plants

Končar, an engineering company, signed a contract in July for the construction of FEBR-D1 and FEBR-D2. It said the endeavor extends the partnership established at HPP Brežice. Of note, it supplied generators for the 47.4 MW HPP, which began operating in 2017.

Located just a few kilometers upstream from HPP Brežice, on the left bank of the Sava River, the two units will have a combined peak capacity of 9.2 MW, powered by 14,790 PV modules, Končar added.

The Croatian firm revealed that the contract is worth EUR 4.5 million. It sets an ambitious goal: both plants are scheduled to be fully operational and handed over to the client by the end of next year, according to Končar.

The largest solar power plant in Slovenia has a capacity of 7.1 MW

In late May, on World Sun Day, HESS announced that it obtained construction permits for the FEBR-D1 and FEBR-D2 solar plants. It is the continuation of the story within which, on June 21, 2023, Slovenia’s largest hybrid solar power plant FEBR-D3 began production, it added.

Of note, the largest solar power plant in Slovenia has a capacity of 7.1 MW. It came online last month on the border with Italy.

Hydropower and solar energy make an excellent combination, so numerous power utilities, including the ones in the Western Balkans, decided to invest. The latest example comes again from Slovenia, where Soške Elektrarne Nova Gorica (SENG), part of HSE, commissioned its first PV unit at its Avče pumped storage hydropower plant.

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August 13, 2025
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Bulgaria, Romania offer much higher renewable energy project returns than Greece – HELLENiQ Energy

The newly purchased wind and solar projects in Romania and Bulgaria will bring much higher returns than ones in the Greek market, claims George Alexopoulos, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of HELLENiQ Energy.

HELLENiQ Renewables Romania, operating under Greece-based HELLENiQ Energy, bought a wind project in Scânteiesti in Galaţi in eastern Romania, with a licensed capacity of 96 MW, and a wind project in the Vaslui region, with a licensed capacity of 186 MW.

In addition, HELLENiQ Energy completed the purchase of a photovoltaic project of 123 MW in Haskovo region in southern Bulgaria, which marks the company’s entry into the country.

The company is facing delays in the Greek renewables market

“We achieved deals on three new projects at a ready-to-build phase in Romania and Bulgaria, which are effectively consistent with our announced strategy and they allow us to have better visibility of the achievement of the interim target of 1.5 GW in operation in the next few years,” the company’s CEO Andreas Shiamishis stressed at the presentation of the financial results from the second quarter and first half of 2025.

Unfortunately, he added, when it comes to the Greek renewables market, the company is facing delays, primarily because of Greek connection terms clarity.

The three new projects are much less susceptible to future curtailment

In the view of George Alexopoulos, Deputy CEO and GM Group Strategic Planning & New Activities, the three said projects are much less susceptible to future curtailment. They also bring notably much higher financial returns than what the company is observing in the Greek market, he said.

Alexopoulos stressed the construction of one project in Romania is starting immediately and that the company expects all the assets to be operational by 2028.

“We expect returns of 10% to 12%, which is considerably higher than Greece, and capex of approximately EUR 0.5 billion, which will be financed on a project finance basis, for the most part,” Alexopoulos explained.

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August 13, 2025
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New solar park in Romania of 71 MW gets final permit for launch

Shikun and Binui Energy is about to begin delivering electricity to the grid from its Satu Mare photovoltaic plant. It is the company’s first renewables project in Romania and the surrounding region.

More than two and a half years after the start of construction, the Satu Mare solar power plant of 71 MW secured the authorization for the beginning of commercial operation, Profit.ro reported. Shikun and Binui Energy borrowed EUR 40.5 million in 2023 for the endeavor from Raiffeisen Bank International and Raiffeisen Bank Romania.

The company is part of Israel-based conglomerate Shikun and Binui, which is active in Romania’s real estate market. The photovoltaic facility in the Satu Mare county is its first investment in renewables in the country and the surrounding region. The contractor is CJR Renewables.

Project began in partnership with Monsson’s Muntmark

With the new permit, project firm Shikun and Binui Energy Satu Mare can register to begin selling electricity and start production. The PV plant spans 85 hectares. In 2021, news emerged that the company would invest up to EUR 50 million through its firm Camre Energy and in partnership with Emanuel Muntmark. He controls Monsson, one of the biggest developers of renewable energy and battery storage projects in Romania.

The same media outlet learned last year that the group intends to install over 300 MW in Buzoiești, in Argeș county. In June 2024, its subsidiary Green Energy Dynamic received technical approval for the Gold Wind onshore wind farm of 376 MW  in Constanta county in eastern Romania. The project is scheduled for completion by the end of 2028.

Earlier there were reports that Shikun and Binui was developing wind and solar power projects in Iași county.

Second solar power plant is under construction in adjacent county

The second major investment of its energy branch is the Șimleu Silvaniei PV facility. The construction of the 101 MW system began more than a year ago. It is in Sălaj county, adjacent to Satu Mare.

Shikun and Binui Energy secured a EUR 49 million loan from Raiffeisen Group for the project. It also picked CJR Renewables as the contractor for Șimleu Silvaniei.

Solar power has been dominating renewable energy investments in Romania for several years, but the wind power segment seems to be rebounding strongly. Battery energy storage systems are also strengthening their role, especially as auxilary facilities for PV and wind parks, turning them into hybrid power plants.

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August 13, 2025
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Bulgaria to add batteries of up to 10,000 MWh in capacity within months – ESO

Bulgaria’s Electricity System Operator has received applications for the connection of batteries with 12 GW in total capability, according to the transmission system operator’s Executive Director Angelin Tsachev.

Bulgaria currently has 500 MW in battery energy storage systems (BESS), with a capacity of 1,300 MWh. The facilities are in private ownership.

Angelin Tsachev told Bulgarian National Radio that the Electricity System Operator (ESO) received applications for about 12,000 MW, with a capacity of 35,000 MWh.

The TSO’s technical council has considered each grid connection request. The operator issued its opinions on the possibilities for enabling network access to the batteries when the conditions are met, Tsachev pointed out.

BESS can now cover about 1.5% of the country’s daily consumption

BESS can now cover about 1.5% of the country’s daily consumption, he revealed. However, in the coming months, batteries with a combined capacity of 7,000 MWh to 10,000 MWh are expected to be installed, the official added. They would be a serious factor, Tsachev stressed.

No state-owned or private conventional power plants are currently equipped with energy storage systems, he asserted.

After the balancing methodology was changed, commercial developers of projects for intermittent power plants became more disciplined, and now there are no concerns about the balancing of the system, Tsachev said. Electricity exports in the first seven months of this year were higher than in the same period of 2024. Net exports reached almost 230,000 MWh, Tsachev noted.

Good investment opportunity

According to an earlier analysis by Rystad Energy, the best potential profits in battery storage in Europe in 2013 were in Greece and Bulgaria. The country’s city of Lovech, northeast of Sofia, hosts the strongest BESS in the Balkans.

The Ministry of Energy of Bulgaria is reportedly working on a public call for EUR 120 million in state aid for investments in battery energy storage systems of 1.5 GWh overall. In April, it granted EUR 587 million to 82 battery storage projects.

The pace of large photovoltaic projects in Bulgaria indicates that total capacity can reach 6 GW by the middle of next year.

However, the Association for Production, Storage and Trading of Electricity (APSTE) warned that the government’s disproportionately high fees for solar panels and energy storage batteries are preventing the possibility of having permanently low electricity prices in Bulgaria.

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August 13, 2025
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First part of Tenevo PV plant comes online, batteries are under construction

The largest hybrid power plant in Bulgaria is beginning to take shape – a joint venture of Eurowind Energy and Renalfa IPP commissioned the first segment of a solar park, and it is building a battery energy storage system (BESS). The Tenevo facility is planned to include a wind power plant as well.

Almost two years after the start of construction, a solar park in Yambol province in southeastern Bulgaria is now producing electricity. It has 69 MW in peak capacity. Project firm Tenevo Solar Technologies has a task to expand it to 237.6 MW, making it one of the biggest photovoltaic systems in the country.

Together with a battery system, of 315 MW in operating power and 760 MWh in capacity, and the planned wind farm of 250 MW, it would be the largest and most complex hybrid power plant in Bulgaria. At this moment, it would also be the first such green energy facility that doesn’t consist only of photovoltaics and batteries. The BESS part alone would probably be the biggest in Europe.

Tenevo will likely become the biggest hybrid power plant in Bulgaria and the first one with an additional source besides solar power and BESS

Tenevo operates under Eura IPP, incorporated in Bulgaria. It is an equally owned joint venture of Renalfa IPP and Eurowind Energy. The former of the two is itself a JV, founded by Vienna-based clean energy and e-mobility company Renalfa Solarpro Group, and French renewable energy infrastructure fund manager RGreen Invest.

Renalfa IPP said it has more than 650 MW in operation, over 1 GW of projects in late-stage development and a project pipeline of more than 3 GW. The company is active in Poland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, and North Macedonia.

Eurowind Energy is a Danish investment and project development company in the field of renewable energy and an independent power producer. It has a global portfolio of over 60 GW, of which 1.3 GW in operation.

Second phase of Tenevo PV park to come online early next year

Together with the solar power plant, the 400 kV grid connection system started operating. The second phase of the Tenevo PV park will be put into operation in early 2026, as some of the panels were damaged by the extremely intense hailstorm in May, according to the update.

The BESS facility is under construction, Renalfa IPP revealed. EURA IPP secured a 320 MW connection to the transmission network, of which up to 213.7 MW is for the solar farm.

Raiffeisen, EBRD are main creditors

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has committed a senior secured loan of up to EUR 50 million. It includes a full or partial cover by a first loss guarantee under the EBRD InvestEU Framework, the lender’s first in Bulgaria. It valued the project at EUR 158.4 million.

Raiffeisen Bank International provided a financing facility of EUR 53 million.

The entire solar power segment of the hybrid power plant is expected to generate 332 GWh per year. The PV panels are equipped with single-axis trackers, allowing them to turn toward the sun, which boosts efficiency.

Tenevo is on the site of a former airport near an eponymous village in the municipality of Tundzha.

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