North Macedonia has begun constructing battery energy storage systems (BESS) this year, according to analysis from Macedonian solar energy association Solar Macedonia.
Professor Dimitar Dimitrov, from Skopje’s Ss. Cyril and Methodius University and Solar Macedonia, told pv magazine some of these projects are standalone battery storage systems, while a significant number involve the integration of battery storage to existing PV plants.
“The main objective of adding battery storage to existing PV facilities is to enable energy arbitrage by storing electricity during periods of low market prices and selling it during higher-price periods,” Dimitrov explained.
“This can improve the overall economic performance of PV projects, increase their revenues and consequently strengthen the investment case and shorten the payback period.”
Statistics from earlier in the year put North Macedonia’s installed solar capacity at above 1 GW. In February, the country’s Ministry of Energy, Mining and Mineral Resources approved 59 solar projects with a combined capacity over 3 GW under its 2026 annual energy construction plan. The construction plan also approved 96 energy storage facilities, including 77 integrated systems linked to new or existing plans and 19 standalone units, with a combined capacity of 2.2 GW/4.9 GWh.
Dimitrov said that during the remainder of 2026, the administrative procedures for utility-scale PV and BESS projects that are already in the national plans and have already received grid-connection approval are expected to speed up, allowing these projects to start construction in 2027.
“At the same time, C&I PV and BESS projects are expected to continue with development,” Dimitrov continued. “The main driver is the growing interest of C&I consumers in reducing their electricity costs, improving energy security and making better use of the renewable energy they produce by themselves.”
Dimitrov also said the introduction of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, which adds additional carbon-related costs to electricity exports to EU countries, is creating additional challenges, even for renewable energy investments.
“As a result, electricity producers are mainly dependent on the domestic market and on exports to non-EU countries in the region,” Dimitrov explained. “This is particularly challenging for solar PV projects. Solar generation is highest around noon hours. Consequently, in these hours electricity markets have a significant surplus of supply, leading to lower electricity prices, reducing the revenues of PV plants and making new investments less attractive.”
Dimitrov added that drought conditions and low Danube water levels that started towards the end of July have contributed to higher regional electricity prices. “[This has appeared] to be favorable for the economic viability of PV plants even in North Macedonia by increasing revenues from electricity generation,” Dimitrov told pv magazine.
Last month, Chinese construction conglomerate PowerChina was selected to implement a 30 MW solar project in North Macedonia for state-owned power utility Elektrani na Severna Makedonija (ESM).
The project, awarded through a European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) tender administered in late 2024, is split into two sites, a 10 MW installation at an exhausted coal mine belonging to the Oslomej thermal power plant and a 20 MW array near the Bitola thermal power plant.
Earlier this year, pv magazine spoke to Dimitrov about North Macedonia’s gigawatt-sized project pipeline of renewable energy projects during Intersolar in Munich.
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