The EC has agreed to fund the expansion of the Chaira PSHPP

After many years of deadlock the EC will give the green light to the environmental assessment for the Yadenitsa dam. Prime Minister Rumen Radev announced this before the start of the government meeting on Friday.

On Thursday he visited Brussels, where he met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa.

The Prime Minister clarified that the dam serves as a lower reservoir for the “Chaira” pumped-storage power plant. The purpose of the new facility is to increase the capacity of the pumped-storage power plant, which acts as a massive battery and is a key component in balancing the country’s electricity grid.

This (the EC’s decision) paves the way for construction with 50%, and perhaps even more, European participation and even greater energy capacity for this power plant, which is important to all of us,” said Radev.

We would like to remind you that, in addition to the Yadenitsa dam, the plan also calls for the construction of a 6 730 m-long, 7 m-diameter reversible pressure tunnel to connect to the Chaira dam. If the project is ever completed the four hydroelectric units currently at the plant (of which, however, only two are currently operational) will operate 24 h a day instead of the current 8 h.

According to official data, the “Yadenitsa” project creates a system of interconnected reservoirs that increases the useful volume of the lower equalizing reservoir at the “Chaira” pumped-storage power plant from 4.2 to 13.4 million m³.

Funding for Stara Zagora, Kyustendil and Pernik

Radev announced that at the meeting he received good news regarding EU funding for the coal-mining regions of Stara Zagora, Kyustendil and Pernik under the Just Transition Plan.

We also discussed this issue; the European Commission is ready to allocate funds if we work at a much faster pace and at the next meeting I will invite the mayors of Stara Zagora, Pernik and Kyustendil so we can hear their ideas and assess their readiness,” the prime minister said.

He assured that the government will ensure the funds reach the people — “to open up new opportunities, industrial zones, new innovative projects and, of course, new jobs.”

We recall that in the early days of the Gyurov caretaker government Minister Angelina Boneva announced that the absorption of funds from the Just Transition Fund (JTF) “is zero.” And the total amount available for the three coal-mining regions is about €1.5 billion – over €1.2 billion in European funding, with the remainder coming from national co-financing under the “Regional Development” Program (RDP) 2021 – 2027.

Translated with DeepL.