Green energy investors see Bulgaria's NREAP as unambitious

(ADPnews) - Oct 21,2010 - The Bulgarian government’s National Renewable Energy Action Plan (NREAP), detailing how the country plans to contribute to the EU 20/20/20 goals, is failing to tap the full potential of Bulgaria’s locally-produced wind power, representatives of the business voiced concerns at an international conference held today in Sofia.

At the “Wind Power in Bulgaria: gearing up for 2020” workshop, renewable energy experts from Bulgaria and the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA) expressed their disappointment with the Bulgarian government’s energy plans.

"There is a disappointing lack of ambition in the Bulgarian government’s energy plans", said Jacopo Moccia of EWEA. "The government has failed to take into account Bulgaria’s excellent wind power potential. Given the problems Bulgaria has suffered with security of energy supply, Bulgaria’s own wind power is too good an opportunity to miss," he added.

EWEA expects the wind industry to install 3,000 MW of wind power in Bulgaria by 2020 – but according to the government’s Renewable Energy Action Plan only a surprisingly low 1,256 MW wind power will be in place at the end of the next decade and grid access for wind power would be capped at 1,800 MW.

Velizar Kiriakov, president of the Association of Producers of Ecological Energy (APEE), underlined that Bulgaria had received "expressions of interest to build 8,000 MW of wind power".

EWEA calculates that Bulgaria could generate between 13.5% and 15% of its total electricity consumption in 2020 from wind energy.

"Our politicians need to take wind energy more seriously and to give a clearer commitment to it", Kiriakov said. "It is hard to understand why the government seems to favour fossil fuel and nuclear rather than wind power, which has no fuel or carbon costs and produces no waste. The government is putting substantial green investments at risk, he noted.

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