Citizens in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) will have the opportunity for the first time to install solar panels with state subsidies, generate electricity for self-consumption, and become prosumers.
Operator for Renewable Energy Sources and Efficient Cogeneration – Operator za OIEiEK has issued a public call for households under the program for co-financing prosumers.
A total of BAM 4 million (EUR 2 million) has been approved for the implementation of the program.
Of that amount, BAM 1.2 million (EUR 600,000) is for the first group of beneficiaries – socially vulnerable households, and BAM 2.8 million (EUR 1.4 million) for the second group of beneficiaries – individuals, owners, or co-owners of family houses.
Households can receive co-financing of 50% to 100%
For the first group, the Operator za OIEiEK would fund up to 100% of eligible costs determined by the program and the public call. This enables socially vulnerable households to access their own electricity generation without the need to independently finance eligible costs of the construction of the facility, the operator said.
For the second group, co-funding of up to 50% of eligible costs is provided, enabling citizens to invest, with the support of the operator, in electricity generation for self-consumption, and reduce their electricity costs in the long term.
Public call published on October 1
The public call was published on October 1 and remains open until the available funds are spent, or a maximum of 90 days from the date of publication.
Operator za OIEiEK launched the program in June last year. Prosumers were introduced as a category in the Federation of BiH through new regulations in 2023. At the end of that year, a school in Lopare became the first prosumer in BiH.
The second entity of BiH – the Republic of Srpska, was the first in the region to adopt the rulebook on renewable energy communities, which also defined rules for prosumers. It plans to continue the further development of prosumers with a loan from the World Bank.
Valka: Beginning of a major change
Acting President of the Management Board of Operator za OIEiEK, Goran Valka, stressed that the publication of the public call represents one of the key moments in the practical application of the prosumer model in the Federation of BiH.
“For me, this is one of the most important moments since I took responsibility for leading the operator. It is important that we managed to make this major step forward in less than six months. Behind this lies a lot of work, responsibility, and the belief that changes should not remain only on paper, but must bring concrete benefits to citizens,” he added.
Valka pointed out that this is the beginning of a major change. “We want the citizen to be at its center,” he said.
