Macedonia Calls Second Tender for Investor in Gas-Fired Co-Generation Plant in Skopje

The only bid in the first tender held in March was placed by Dufenergy-Macedonia, part of international corporation Duferco, but it was rejected by the government. At the time, ELEM declined to elaborate on the reasons for the rejected bid.

The Energetika plant should have a minimum installed capacity of 300 megawatts (MW) for production of electricity and a maximum of 150 MW for production of heating energy, ELEM said in the tender notice. The construction of the plant should finish within 30 months.

ELEM should own no less than 15 % of the plant, but the government through the power utility will keep the right to increase its stake in the plant to 51%.

Eligible bidders will be companies or consortia that had built at least two co-generation plants of 500 MW each within the past 10 years. Interested bidders must also certify an annual turnover of at least 300 million euro ($440.7 million) in the past five years, ELEM said.

According to Macedonian media, the project will cost around 250 million euro ($367.3 million).

The bid deadline is January 21, 2009.

Macedonia imports some 40% of the energy it needs and faces serious challenges in its energy sector infrastructure, including insufficient power links with its neighbours.

($ = 0.6806 euro)