North Macedonia to spend €1.5 bn on new hydroelectric and wind power projects

Premier Christian Micic announced that the government will fund, without private partners, two run‑of‑river hydroelectric plants—Chebren and Galishte—on the Black River (Crna Reka). Chebren will be located 81 km upstream of the Vardar mouth near the village of Manastir; Galishte will be at the upper part of the existing Tikves reservoir about 54 km from the confluence. Galishte is designed for 193.5 MW and an expected annual production of 262.5 GWh. The combined investment for the two plants is €1.5 billion.

A €400 million wind farm is under construction near Štip, covering the municipalities of Štip, Karbinci and Radoviš, and will supply electricity to roughly 100,000 households, making it the largest renewable‑energy project in the country. The government is also negotiating a second wind park in the northeast, potentially costing €800 million, and plans to build gas‑fired cogeneration centers that will connect to every home for electricity and heat.