The Chaira hydroelectric power plant is an extremely important infrastructure facility, and its expansion is a critical infrastructure project, because it will allow for an increase in the volume of energy storage and provides flexibility with regard to the storage system itself. This was said by the Minister of Energy Iva Petrova in the BNT program “Speak Now“.
According to her, the expansion would allow for longer energy storage, for more hours of operation, which is really needed by the system at the moment in view of the new participants - renewable sources, which are entering on a rather aggressive scale.
Bulgaria has exceptional potential to position itself not only as a transmission infrastructure but also as a storage system, commented Petrova. She added that our country has become an example in terms of of the large amount of storage batteries that have entered the system. According to her, it is already evident that they are working and optimizing regional systems.
The Energy Minister noted that the National Electricity Company (NEK) has a much larger and ambitious portfolio of projects for PAWPPs - at least 4-5 more projects are being developed and they are really needed in the context of the overall development and transformation of energy systems.
Iva Petrova stated that since 2022, a lot of effort has been made, the technical and environmental aspects of PAWPP “Chaira“ have been seriously developed, so the project is being implemented according to the best standards.
Regarding the deadlines, the Energy Minister said that NEK is currently preparing an application for co-financing under the Connecting Europe Facility. The schedule, the values, the necessary financing, the financing model are currently being updated, and more information about the deadlines will be available in a few months. of implementation, she indicated.
As for the current repairs of the Chaira Hydroelectric Power Plant, Petrova indicated that Toshiba is working on hydro unit 1 and it is expected to be in operation at the latest in early 2028, and the optimal technical solution is currently being sought for hydro unit 4.
With the expansion of the Chaira Hydroelectric Power Plant, Bulgaria is strengthening its position as an innovative and sustainable player in the energy sector. The new projects will provide greater security, stability and opportunities for the integration of renewable sources, which is key for the future of the national energy sector.