Sofia, November 1, 2024 – The Bulgarian-Korean Energy Forum was held today and was attended by Nikola Gazdov, Chairman of the Association for Production, Storage and Trading of Electricity (APSTE). During the panel “Energy Transformation through Energy Storage”, Gazdov discussed the key role of storage systems in the modernisation of the Bulgarian energy system together with Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ivan Ivanov, Chairman of Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC), Ivan Hinovski, Chairman of the Bulgarian Energy and Mining Forum, and Martin Georgiev, Executive Director of NEK.
Gazdov stressed the importance of energy storage systems, which give flexibility to producers and consumers as well as the system operator:
“Energy storage systems will allow the balancing of existing RES and the entry of even more new capacity, while ensuring grid stability. We expect the deployment of at least 2 GWh of batteries by the end of 2026, which will help to sustainably reduce electricity costs for Bulgarian households and industry“, Gazdov noted.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ivan Ivanov, Chairman of the EWRC, also emphasized the rapid growth of the renewable energy sector:
“10 years ago Bulgaria had about 1600 MW of installed capacity from renewable energy sources – 1000 from solar power plants and about 600 MW from wind power plants. By the end of 2023, we had 4,300 MW of RES, and in the first 10 months of 2024 alone, the EWRC has issued licenses for over 1,300 MW of new capacity of RES producers. This shows that the sector is developing exponentially.“
The Forum confirmed Bulgaria’s commitment to developing green technologies and strengthening international cooperation in the energy sector.
