RES SERBIA 2024: Solar power plants of (only) 130 MW connected to distribution system in Serbia – How to increase solar capacity 13 times?

A total of 171 solar power plants with an installed power of 60 MW is connected to the distribution system of Serbia at the moment. If the 70 MW form 3600 prosumers is added to it, a total of 130 MW of solar is connected to the distribution system. Requests are sent daily, and Elektrodistribucija is working on accelerating the process of connection, as Dunja Grujic, the director of the Market Support Sector of Elektrodistribucija Srbije (EDS), revealed at the RES SERBIA 2024 conference in Vrdnik.

Let us remind that, according to the recently adopted Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan (INECP), the installed power in solar power plants by 2030 is 1730 MW (1.73 GW), which means that, in six years, the solar capacity should increase 13 times.

In spring 2025, 300 MW of solar power plants on grid

The good news is that another 150 MW is in preparation, ready to be connected, so in the spring of next year, we will have 300 MW of solar power plants connected to the distribution system, announced the general manager of MT KOMEX, Milos Kostic, at the panel discussion dedicated to the challenges of the construction of solar power plants.

And just 15 years ago, nobody believed in such a development of events, revealed Kostic. He recalled that, in 2009, everybody had been dissatisfied because solar capacities had been limited to only 5 MW, whereas other types of renewable energy, such as hydro energy and biogas, had been given advantage.

– Experience has shown that that was not the right moment for the solar sector in Serbia, but instead, by 2013, 138 small hydro power plants and 30 MW of biogas power plants had been built. It is good that this was done, we are learning from other’s mistakes – pointed out Kostic.

As he says, the new legal framework has enabled the acceleration of the solar sector, and everybody is now waiting for the second auctions.

Let us remind, at the first auctions, at which the interest of investors was not great, two of the five projects for which the quota was allocated have signed agreements on turnkey construction with MT KOMEX.

– We are expecting a serious race with the second auctions, there are plenty of those who are interested – said Kostic.

Residential communities – Great potential

That the solar sector has been developing only in the past years is also confirmed by the data of EDS which show that nearly the entire power, 50 MW of solar power plants and 70 MW of prosumers, has been connected in the past two years.

Still, there are ways of further growth, believes Dunja Grujic, the director of the Market Support Sector of EDS.

– Among the residential communities, there are only three prosumers, with an installed power of 70 kW, and there are over 50,000 residential units in Serbia, that is a great unutilized potential. The amendments to the Law on Energy envisage energy communities of citizens which enable citizens to join and build a solar power plant together – pointed out Grujic and added that the amendments to the law also defined that, in the next 2 to 2.5 years, calculation through net metering for prosumers would be finished.

One solar panel per every citizen of Europe

In Europe, the solar sector is still flourishing, notes Jonathan Bonadio, the senior policy advisor at SolarPower Europe. As he says, last year, 60 GW of capacities was installed, which is 50% more than in 2022.

– Europe has over 250 GW of solar capacities, which is equivalent to one solar panel per citizen of Europe and enough to power 80 million homes, but, by 2030, we need 750 GW – he points out.

As he says, the main markets are Germany, which has had a growth of 50%, whereas the Netherlands has the most solar panels per citizen, and Italy, Spain and France also rate well.

– The paradox is that Germany and the Netherlands are some of the least sunny countries in the EU, and they have the biggest solar capacities per citizen. East Europe is sunnier, which is not followed by the number of installed capacities. The goals of these countries for 2030 are twice as low as the actual potential – warns Bonadio.

He notes that most of the measures for a further development of solar energy have been adopted and that national energy and climate plans are essential. Among the challenges, he highlights the slow process of issuing permits, and he also notes that the electrification of the energy system and an increase of the share of electrical energy in the final consumption from 23% to 50% by 2040 are needed.

– The number of installed capacities can be increased through regulations, such as the obligation to have solar panels built on the roofs of public facilities by 2030, which is also an opportunity for producers, as well as the possibility to support European panels through public demand – said Bonadio.

Slovenia has no wind farms, but installed 400 MW of solar last year

Nina Hojnik, the director of the Slovenian Photovoltaic Association, explained that, for the development of solar energy, state subsidies and support were very important.

– In Slovenia, we only have three small wind farms, so solar power is principal when it comes to renewable sources. We don’t have commercial projects yet, because 40% of Slovenia is in the Natura protection system, so that is preventing us, but we are looking to implement solar on existing buildings, parking lots, facilities – pointed out Hojnik.

The development of the sector, as she explained, began in 2011, when the solar capacity was doubled thanks to the government’s subsidies. However, with the removal of the subsidies, in the next six years, everything stopped, and almost nobody invested, she noted. According to her, the sector was relaunched in 2016 with the change of the government and the implementation of the net metering system.

– Until 2019, we had a mild growth, so subsidies were introduced again and the sector experienced a big growth of 40%. Last year, we installed 400 MW of solar capacities. This year, the system of net metering, which has enabled a return on investment in small power plants shorter than eight years, is finishing – pointed out Hojnik.

At the panel “Challenges and Perspectives of Development and Construction of Solar Power Plants”, Yiannis Roumeliotis, the key account manager for Southeast Europe at Sungrow, also participated, and the moderator was Dr. Radivoje Petrikic, a partner at CMS Beograd.

The eKapija portal is a media sponsor of the RES SERBIA 2024 conference, which is held for the fourth year in a row. It is organized by the Renewable Energy Sources of Serbia Association.

M. Dedic

Obnovljivi izvori energije Srbije

Elektrodistribucija Srbije d.o.o. Beograd

MT Komex doo Beograd

CMS Reich‑Rohrwig Hainz d.o.o. Beograd

Slovenian Photovoltaic Association

Sungrow

Yiannis Roumeliotis

Radivoje Petrikić

Dunja Grujić

Nina Hojnik

Miloš Kostić

RES SERBIA 2024

solar power plants

solar capacity

solar panels

electrification of energy system

energy communities of citizens