EBRD grants €50M loan to Tenevo Solar for Bulgaria’s new solar plant

Brussels: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is providing up to €50 million in funding to Tenevo Solar Technologies EAD for the development and operation of a solar power plant in southeastern Bulgaria. The Tenevo plant will produce over 300 GWh of electricity annually and reduce carbon emissions by 250,000 tonnes each year. Raiffeisen Bank International is also contributing €53 million, bringing the total financing to €103 million.

This project is part of the EBRD’s InvestEU Framework for Sustainable Transition, which aims to support green investments and align with EU standards. The EBRD is using the InvestEU guarantee for the first time in Bulgaria through this project, which will help accelerate Bulgaria’s transition to green energy. The Tenevo solar plant will add 238 MW of solar capacity to Bulgaria’s energy grid, with plans to eventually include 250 MW of energy storage. This project is crucial for helping Bulgaria meet its goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and reduce its reliance on coal-powered energy.

This project will be Bulgaria’s first renewable energy plant over 100 MW to sell all of its electricity directly in the market without relying on government support or a corporate power purchase agreement. It is also recognized as Gender SMART, with the sponsors and the company committing to the UN Women’s Empowerment Principles to promote gender equality in Bulgaria’s male-dominated energy sector.

Additionally, the project will boost private sector involvement in Bulgaria’s renewable energy market. Tenevo Solar Technologies EAD, a joint-stock company established in Bulgaria to build and operate the plant, is equally owned by two partners. One is Renalfa IPP, an Austrian joint venture between Renalfa Solarpro Group, a clean energy and e-mobility company based in Vienna, and RGreen Invest, a French renewable energy infrastructure fund. The other partner is Eurowind Energy, a Danish company specializing in renewable energy development and power production.

“We are delighted to finance this sizeable merchant solar project, which highlights the Bank’s continued support for Bulgaria’s green transition, in today’s context of concerns over regional energy security in light of Russia’s war on Ukraine as well as to support Bulgaria’s ambitious renewables and decarbonisation targets,” said Grzegorz Zielinski, Head of Energy Europe in the EBRD’s Sustainable Infrastructure Group.

Kalina Pelovska, executive director for Tenevo Solar Technologies EAD, said in a statement, “We are excited to partner with the EBRD and Raiffeisen Bank International on this ground-breaking project, which reflects our shared vision for a more sustainable future in Bulgaria. This collaboration represents a key landmark for the renewable energy investment community in the region, and we look forward to working together to bring our plans to reality.”

Renewable energy is set to play a key role in Bulgaria’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions. The country aims to have renewables account for 34.7% of its electricity consumption by 2030, more than doubling its 2020 target of 16%. This ambitious goal has sparked growing interest in the renewable energy sector, leading to the construction of around 1.3 GW of additional solar power capacity over the past two years.

Furthermore, Bulgaria has made a significant step in its decarbonisation journey with the completion of its first renewable energy tender for projects with co-located battery energy storage systems. This tender awarded grants for over 3 GW of new solar power projects. These efforts are part of Bulgaria’s Recovery and Resilience Plan, which is supported by the EBRD, and include a target to add at least 3.5 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2026.