Bulgaria has promised to supply additional amounts of electricity to North Macedonia for the upcoming winter. It was announced after Bulgarian Prime Minister Galab Donev and his Macedonian companion Dimitar Kovachevski conducted a meeting in Sofia to discuss the electricity shortage in North Macedonia.
Prime Minister Galab Donev stated,” “We quickly replied to the request for assistance from the Republic of North Macedonia to reasonably manage the country’s problems in the energy sector. We discussed unique electricity and natural gas transmission prospects, considering industrial and residential RNM users’ needs.
Until the end of March 2023, Bulgaria is expected to export 200-megawatt hours of power every day to the Republic of North Macedonia. This export is almost 10% of Bulgaria’s electricity exports to neighbouring countries, stabilising the region’s electricity network. There are no further details, whether for monthly supplies or some other period.
It’s clear that the export contract between the two countries is in final process, but still, there is no information on whether the prices will be lower than free market or not.
Dimitar Kovachevski, Prime Minister of North Macedonia, said, “We will work with Bulgaria to find a solution for electricity supply. Bulgaria provided assistance two years ago when North Macedonia faced the lack of COVID-19 vaccination; today, the nation doesn’t have enough electricity, and we hope Bulgaria will again assist their fellow neighbour. To discuss the technical options for supplying electricity, we have decided to establish a working group with the participation of the ministries of economy and energy of Bulgaria and Macedonia”.
Both countries also discussed the possibility of North Macedonia storing their gas in a Bulgarian storage facility located in Chiren. Additionally, agreements will be made to store natural gas in “Chiren” so Macedonia can take advantage of its involvement in the Alexandroupolis terminal. By doing this, liquefied gas supply can be equally distributed without putting the nation at further risk.