Bulgaria has got its largest solar power plant with 123 MW installed capacity, according to the country's publicly listed energy group Electrohold that energized the FEC Verila PV Station for which it claims to have the country's largest corporate power purchase agreement (PPA).
The company claims with this installed capacity, FEC Verila accounts for 7% of the total operational solar capacity in the country, going by the installed PV capacity in Bulgaria at the end of 2022. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), Bulgaria's cumulative installed PV at the end of 2022 was 1.948 GW out of 5.20 GW total renewables capacity.
Located on over 1,300 hectares land on the southern slope of Verila Mountain, next to Kraynitsi village, the solar project is stationed on an uneven terrain with steep slopes. It is equipped with more than 220,000 solar panels.
During days with intense sunshine, the plant will produce electricity that can power areas such as Kyustendil and Blagoevgrad.
Mobile network and telecommunications companies Yettel and CETIN Bulgaria, both part of the PPF Telecom Group, signed the offtake agreement for this project for 10-year duration in March 2023 (see Europe PV News Snippets). It will provide 80% and about 86% of the total consumption of the 2 companies, respectively.
Electrohold built the BGN 200 million ($111 million) project with a mix of equity and financing from DSK Bank and Varengold Bank, through project company Belozem Solar Park 3. The company hired SUNOTEC of Bulgarian-German origin to bring FEC Verila online.
"This project is part of our development strategy. We are already thinking about the next steps – expansion of RES capacities and implementation of the best form of storage of the produced green energy," said Chairman of the Board of Directors of Eurohold and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Electrohold Sales, Kiril Boshov.