Insufficient capacity of ESO's electricity network hampers renewables connections in North-East Bulgaria

The growth of installed capacities for electricity generation from renewable sources leads to difficulties in connecting facilities to the ENERGO-PRO electricity distribution network. In recent years, the limit value in terms of network capacity in the North-East region has been reached. Increasingly, applications for accession have to be refused due to a lack of available capacity for energy transformation and transmission to meet the growing investor interest in building new renewable energy generation facilities. At the same time, demands for new capacity continue in sparsely populated regions with declining consumption, and this is a prerequisite for higher accession costs. In North-East Bulgaria there are many urbanized areas, with minimal or zero electricity consumption, there is no available capacity in the transmission network facilities, the power lines do not have the ability to carry large amounts of energy, the substations have practically exhausted the capacity of transformer power, and the requests for installation of renewable energy are many.

The problem of accessions is particularly significant in the districts of Dobrich and Targovishte. More and more investors are writing complaints to the regulator EWRC, but the possibilities for resolving the cases are directly dependent on the future development and the ESO network. As a distribution network operator, ENERGO-PRO receives refusals from the electricity transmission operator to consider investment projects on the grounds of lack of network capacity. This is another argument in favor of the fact that the successful and smooth implementation of Bulgaria's commitments under the so-called “green deal” requires an integrated and national approach that combines the efforts of both the transmission operator and the distribution companies. Accelerated investment in only part of the connected electricity transmission and distribution networks in the transmission or distribution networks will not solve the problems of providing capacity for new connections of renewable energy producers.

As a socially responsible company, we believe that it is time to consider new measures to create such a national policy that, on the one hand, satisfies the investor interest in new renewable energy capacities and, on the other hand, creates conditions for preserving the integrity and security of electricity transmission and distribution networks. The EBRD, as the body responsible for relations in the sector, should implement a regulatory policy that stimulates the development of networks but also distributes in a fair way among all network users the costs caused by the increase in the production of energy from renewable sources. The creation of conditions for investment mainly in sources of production for own consumption and economic prerequisites for the development of sparsely populated regions are the main pillars for allowing the continued implementation of Bulgaria's commitments to the policies of the European Union for increasingly clean and secure energy.