North Macedonia’s power utility ESM gets new top management

North Macedonia’s state-owned power utility Elektrani na Severna Makedonija has got a new board of directors and a new general manager and top management.

On the recommendation of the Government of North Macedonia, the Supervisory Board of state power company Elektrani na Severna Makedonija (ESM) has appointed a new Board of Directors, ESM said.

Lazo Uzunčev was appointed President of the Board of Directors and General Manager of the joint-stock company. Uzunčev has a degree in mechanical engineering and has held various management positions in the private sector.

The new general manager is Lazo Uzunčev

Apart from Uzunčev, other members of the Board of Directors were also appointed. They are Redžep Asani, deputy general manager, Đorđi Đorđijevski, manager for legal and general affairs, Zoran Konjanovski, manager for electricity generation, Viktor Jovanovski, commercial director, Ivan Stojanovski, manager of financial affairs, and Vladimir Pejoski, manager for development and investments.

As the ESM general manager, Uzunčev replaces Vasko Stefanov, who was appointed in April 2023.

The new management’s priority is to ensure the country’s energy stability through efficient management, financial consolidation, and strengthening the company’s capacities at all levels, ESM said.

North Macedonia elected a new government in June

The goals of the new management also include cost optimization and the implementation of development projects to promote ESM into a competitive company that will cover the electricity needs of end consumers, while professionally adapting to market conditions and stringent environmental protection standards.

Of note, as a result of the last election, North Macedonia got a new government at the end of June.

The Minister of Energy, Mining and Mineral Resources in the government of Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski is Sanja Božinovska.

After her appointment as minister, she noted that it was urgent to tackle unreasonable expenditure, excess employment, and corruption within state-owned power company ESM and transmission system operator MEPSO.