Bulgaria sees wind power capacity rising six-fold within decade - report

(ADPnews) - Nov 15, 2010 - The Bulgarian Wind Energy Association (BWEA) expects the country’s wind power capacity to rise to 2,000 MW - 3,000 MW from the current 500 MW over the next decade, news provider SeeNews reported on Friday, quoting BWEA’s chairman, Kenneth Lefkowitz.

A major challenge for investors in wind energy projects in Bulgaria is the country's constrained grid capacity, Lefkowitz told SeeNews in an interview. Another hurdle is power grid operator NEK's resistance to restructuring, which can be partially resolved with bigger transparency regarding the company's operations, he added.

A problem for the wind-energy market Lefkowitz also sees in the fact that the feed-in tariffs for renewable energy in the country are set on an annual basis, which makes it very hard for project developers and their bankers to predict the long-term development of their projects.

Bulgaria has enough resources to develop a strong renewable energy sector, Lefkowitz said. “If you look at the energy choices Bulgaria has to make in order to replace old capacity – renewable energy is not much more expensive, and an energy mix with a significant contribution of renewables can actually be cheaper for Bulgaria in the long term,” he added.

Choose your newsletter by Renewables Now. Join for free!