Bulgaria's Burgas region rejects agrivoltaics project

The decision to allow construction was overruled in response to complaints lodged by local residents claiming that the project on farming land near the villages of Dyulevo, Orlintsi, Suhodol and Svetlina will impinge on agriculture, livestock rearing, beekeeping and hunting tourism, the regional governor's office said in a statement.

The investment proposal tabled by Sredec Solar gives insufficient reason to Sredetz municipal council for repurposing the farming land in question, the head of Burgas Region adminstration said in the statement.

Sredec Solar BG intends to build a solar park with a total capacity of 550 MW plus battery storage and hydrogen systems on lands close to the villages of Orlintsi, Suhodol, Svetlina, Dyulevo, Zagortsi and Malina, with existing high-voltage power lines allowing potential connection to the grid, according to a document published by the regional environmental inspection in Burgas earlier this year. Lands around the villages of Suhodol and Dyulevo were to be used for the construction of battery storage and hydrogen systems, and warehouses for the storage and repair of equipment, the document shows.

Sredec Solar BG is owned by Plovdiv-based Omega Agro Invest, a company fully-owned by Bulgarian agricultural land management business Agrion Invest, according to the commercial register.