North Macedonia has approved a renewable and storage pipeline far larger than its existing power system, shifting the principal investment risk from permitting to grid integration.
The country installed around 210 MW of solar capacity in 2025, taking cumulative photovoltaic capacity above 1 GW. Its 2026 energy-construction plan includes 59 solar projects totalling more than 3 GW, while total approved power projects reach approximately 4.4 GW. The previous year’s plan contained only 1.2 GW, including 812 MW of solar.
The acceleration demonstrates investor interest, but only a portion of the pipeline can be connected without major network reinforcement. Uncoordinated development would increase curtailment, weaken solar capture prices and create a growing difference between nominally approved capacity and financially executable projects.
The country’s most strategically significant balancing project remains the proposed Čebren pumped-storage hydropower plant. After repeated failed concession attempts, the government is considering state-led implementation. The total investment has been estimated at approximately €1.5 billion including financing costs, while government calculations indicate an internal rate of return above 10%.
Čebren could provide seasonal storage, peak generation, renewable balancing and water-management benefits. Yet its size also creates material construction, hydrological, environmental and sovereign-financing exposure. The project would require a robust geotechnical baseline, disciplined procurement and clear allocation of interface risks between civil works, electromechanical equipment and transmission infrastructure.
At REK Bitola, state utility ESM has secured a $2.4 million World Bank grant for preparatory work on a cogeneration plant and expansion of the district-heating system. The studies will assess a transition from existing coal-based generation towards technology capable of using natural gas and potentially hydrogen.
North Macedonia is therefore pursuing utility-scale solar, pumped storage and thermal conversion simultaneously. The credible investment pipeline will be the portion that can demonstrate firm connection dates, dispatch value and financing structures resilient to grid delays.
