North Macedonia's government said it has selected Bulgarian solar energy equipment supplier Solarpro Holding [BUL:0S8] and Turkish Fortim Energy Electric to build photovoltaic power plants of combined 100 MW at the location of an old mine in Oslomej.
Each of the companies will build one solar powerplant with an installed capacity of 50 MW as part of a public-private partnership (PPP) with state-owned electricity company ESM, the government said in a statement on Tuesday.
Under the PPPs, ESM will receive 18.510% of the electricity produced by Fortim Energy Electric and 18.010% of the electricity generated by Solarpro's plant. The starting level required by the government was 10%.
North Macedonia invited offers for participation in a PPP for the solar park project worth an estimated 80 million euro ($96 million) in February, 2020.
The agreement will have a 35-year term, after which the ownership of the solar parks will be transferred to ESM, according to an earlier statement by the government.
In a separate statement issued on Wednesday, Solarpro said it was selected for the project after live auction bidding on April 16, in which three international candidates took part.
Solarpro will offer 50 jobs to the former miners in the region, the company's CEO Konstantin Nenov said in the statement.
"I would like to congratulate our future partner ESM for obtaining such excellent results out of the tender. I would like to congratulate the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia for organizing such competitive procedure and showing to the whole South East European region, with practical examples, how the old polluted coal mine areas can create well paid jobs and produce clean energy at competitive market price," Nenov said.
The company expects to reach over 80 MW installed capacity in North Macedonia in two years, Alexander Petreski, CEO of Solarpro's unit in North Macedonia said, noting that the company supplies over 450 companies in North Macedonia with electricity.
In 2020, Solarpro won a tender for the construction of a solar power plant of 10 MW in the village of Manastirec, Makedonski Brod.
Established in 2007, Solarpro Holding employs over 1,000 people.
In Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria and North Macedonia, Solarpro operates complete renewable energy platforms, with over 150 MWp own projects in construction and 500 MWp + projects in development. The company is a leader in offering long term PPA's (Power Purchase Agreements), long term lease agreements for SaaS (Solar as a Service) and various other solutions for corporate sourcing of green energy and improving ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) ratings.
As a general contractor and construction services provider, Solarpro Holding group is a global player with over 3000 MWp of installed capacity PV projects, completed on five continents to date. Particularly strong is the presence with construction services on some of the key EU markets - Netherlands, Germany, France and Portugal.
(SeeNews, April 21, 2021)
