On March 10, 2026, the Ministry of Environment and Water (MOEW) published a draft Plan for the Development of Priority Zones for Wind Energy with the aim of informing all stakeholders as part of a “pre-information procedure.”
The MOEW emphasizes that priority wind energy development zones represent a strategic tool for optimizing the administrative process, thereby ensuring shorter timelines and predictability for investment plans in areas with low environmental risk. The Plan also states that “Pursuant to Article 5, paragraph 10 of the Renewable Energy Sources Act, the development and adoption of this Plan do not preclude the possibility of developing and implementing projects for the production of electricity from wind energy outside the territories included in the priority zones, provided that all requirements of applicable national and European legislation are met.”
The document states that the Plan will identify the zones in which electricity generation from wind farms is not expected to have a significant impact on the environment, with a view to achieving the national target for the share of energy from renewable sources in gross final energy consumption in accordance with the planned installed capacity for electricity generation from wind power plants in the integrated NECP.
The process of identifying these zones is based on spatial analysis using geographic information systems (GIS) and includes the following main steps: 1) Identifying areas with high technical potential for wind energy production; 2) Application of exclusion criteria in accordance with regulatory and strategic constraints; 3) Classification of areas with favorable characteristics.
The result of the mapping, based on the analysis with wind speeds above 5.5 m/s and the exclusion of areas falling within environmental and restricted zones, is a map delineating 25 zones. These cover a total area of 6,383.91 sq. km, on which at least 2,500 MW of new wind power capacity can physically be located. The zones cover territories in the following regions: Vidin, Montana, Vratsa, Pleven, Veliko Tarnovo, Lovech, Gabrovo, Ruse, Targovishte, Razgrad, Sliven, Sofia Province, Sofia (Capital), Pernik, Kyustendil, Stara Zagora, Haskovo, Kardzhali, and Smolyan, and include numerous municipalities within these regions.
Regarding grid connection in the zones, it is reported to have 463 MW of capacity under preliminary contracts, as well as 1,615 MW of potential for new connections. The total capacity for all zones amounts to 2,078 MW.
APSTE is working on preparing a statement based on a meeting held by its members immediately following the accidental leak of the Plan’s draft in February. The deadline for submitting statements is April 9, 2026.
>> If you did not attend the meeting but would like to contribute to the drafting of the statement, please express your interest by emailing us at info@apste.eu
