February 15 (SeeNews) - North Macedonia's state-owned electricity company ESM said on Monday it signed a 2.4 million euro ($2.9 million) grant agreement with German development bank KfW for green energy investments.
ESM will use the grant to finance the development of studies for the feasibility, environmental impact and social aspects of planned green energy projects, ESM general manager Vasko Kovachevski said in a statement.
The grant will back studies for the installation of photovoltaic plants with a total capacity of over 140 MW at the REK Bitola thermal power plant, hydropower plants rehabilitation, the construction of a wind park in Miravci, the upgrade of the Energetika complex in Skopje and setting up a central heating network in Bitola.
The implementation of these energy projects would increase electricity production by about 650 GWh, ESM added.
The grant will also make available an additional 80.5 million euro in affordable loans for the construction of the energy facilities, North Macedonia's prime minister Zoran Zaev said in the statement.
($ = 0.8247 euro)