Photo: Jens Rasch from Pixabay
By the end of 2024, Bulgaria’s Electricity System Operator (ESO) will finish all the investments needed to secure the connection of new power plants with a total installed capacity of 4,500 MW, primarily renewables.
ESO, the country’s transmission system operator, has invested more than EUR 25 million in the digitalization of the grid, its Executive Director Angelin Tsachev said, as quoted by BTA.
He said the digitalization of the medium-voltage grid is expected to be finished by 2024. The deadline was mid-2026, but the activities were implemented much faster.
Grid modernization is necessary for the company to meet its obligations from all the contracts for connecting new power plants, Tsachev said at the regional conference for renewable energy RE-Source Southeast.
Bulgaria’s TSO plans to increase the cross-border transmission capacity by 2,000 MW
ESO has signed preliminary agreements for 4,000 MW, and it must secure the connection for 4,500 MW, according to the target set in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan.
Tsachev said ESO would be responsible for all new renewable power plants.
The plan also sets a goal to increase the cross-border transmission capacity by 2,000 MW. Bulgaria has already finished its part of the new power line with Greece, Tsachev said.
A new power link with Greece will be constructed by 2023
Greece needs to build the remaining 29 kilometers of the new interconnector with a total length of 122 km. The expected go-live of the power line is by the end of 2023.
Tsachev said the establishment of the new market design is also in the pipeline. He added that the intention is to make it more resilient to market changes.
According to Tsachev, Bulgaria will meet all conditions to become part of the EU common electricity market by 2026.
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