The green energy transition and investments in infrastructure are no longer just an option, they are an investment in the future of the country, in energy independence, sustainability and competitiveness, said the General Director of AD MEPSO, Burim Latifi, at the eighth Macedonian Energy Forum - MEF 2025. Noting that renewable energy production is often variable and unpredictable, he stated that this process is particularly challenging, and to manage such effects, the system requires stability, flexibility, and intensive investments.
So far, the company has registered over 80 applications for connecting renewable energy sources (RES) to the transmission network, with a total of 9,000 MW of new capacity. In the short term, it is estimated that our system can integrate up to 1,500 MW of RES. Flexibility is ensured through 200 MW of system reserves for appropriate balancing. Generally, the transmission network is topologically well-developed, but in regions where potential renewable sources are concentrated, the local transmission network lacks sufficient capacity, Ljatifi said during a panel discussion on financing energy ambitions.
Through careful and strategically precise planning, MEPSO successfully manages two of the most critical processes for the country's energy future: ensuring the stability of the power system and the dynamic integration of renewable energy sources (RES).
These parallel processes are complex and require a high degree of coordination, technical expertise, and visionary leadership. To achieve these goals, the following are essential: long-term and stable financial mechanisms, technological transformation of infrastructure, and intensive regional cooperation. Loans, grants, and technical assistance are the driving force behind the process of integrating renewable sources and ensuring regional energy security. And in that direction, our goals are specific, modernization and digitalization of the network, increasing the capacity for cross-border connections, integration of the electricity market and technological and institutional readiness to accept a larger volume of renewable energy sources. This is not just a technical mission, he said, but a strategic commitment to the future of the country and the region, he stated on the sidelines of the MEF 2025 energy forum.
MEF 2025 brings together government institutions, domestic and international energy experts, industry, civil society, and international organizations in one place, with a common goal: to define a sustainable, just, and environmentally responsible path for the energy development of the Western Balkans.