Large-scale BESS projects have been completed or progressed in Bulgaria, Moldova, North Macedonia and Romania, including what is now the largest operational system in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region.
Enery commissions 601.8MWh Bulgaria project, largest in CEE
Independent power producer (IPP) Enery has commissioned its 150MW/601.8MWh Nova Zagora battery energy storage system (BESS) in Bulgaria, the largest in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE).
The project started commercial operations in March, and will support the integration of renewables onto Bulgaria’s grid.
It is made up of 120 containers of 5.015MWh each and connects to the grid via a 33/110kV substation, aided by 30 transformer stations of 5.140MVA each.
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The project was financed by a ‘green’ package from DSK Bank AD and has a virtual PPA (VPPA) with power firm Vitol.
Enery is active across the Southeast Europe region, also financing a solar-plus-BESS project in Romania last year with 1GWh of capacity.
It was just in January that a c.500MWh BESS was commissioned in Bulgaria, claimed as the largest in the entire EU.
Rezolv completes solar-plus-storage in Bulgaria
Also in Bulgaria, Rezolv Energy has completed a 225MW solar, 90MW/240MWh BESS project, dubbed the St George Solar Park.
The BESS was supported by a grant under the European Union’s NextGenerationEU programme and the project has a VPPA. Its offtake agreement is with Ardagh Glass Packaging-Europe.
Project partners include Solarpro Holding, CMC Europe and Green Solar Energy while financing partners were the IFC and Raiffeisen Bank International. Rezolv is owned by UK-based investor Actis.
Largest BESS in Moldova inaugurated
IPP GS Blue Electric has inaugurated a 50MW solar PV, 60MWh BESS project in Rădeni, Moldova, in a ceremony last week (30 April). Commercial bank Maib provided project financing.
The project will provide energy to the electricity system during peak evening periods, as well as supporting stability, Maib said.
Iurie Brumarel, of the Moldova Green Future Initiative association, said it is the largest BESS in Moldova.
Numerous outlets have reported that the project uses both BESS and inverters from Chinese firm Huawei.
The country, which lies between Romania and Ukraine, has reached 1GW of solar PV this year. The adjacent solar plant, Radeni Solar Park, may also be the largest in Moldova.
Co-located projects are likely to grow in number following the Ministry of Energy launching a renewable energy tender at the end of 2025 for wind farms totalling 170MW. The projects need to have BESS co-located, at a minimum ratio of 0.25MWh of BESS for ever 1MW of wind.
Renalfa starts building 200MWh project in North Macedonia
IP Renalfa has started construction on a 50MW/200 MWh co-located BESS in Oslomej, in the Republic of North Macedonia.
The project is co-located with a 65.8MWp sola PV plant (operational since 2023), on the site of a former coal mine.
The government of North Macedonia (formerly just ‘Macedonia’) recently approved the construction of 4.42GW of new power generation capacity, a mix of gas and renewables, plus over 2GW of energy storage.
The current largest operational BESS is likely a 30MW/60MWh project commissioned in February this year by owner Mey Energy.
Renalfa is also active in the wider region. In 2024 it commissioned a 55MWh project in Bulgaria, then the largest in the country. It secured financing from EBRD for its renewables and storage rollout in the region in July last year.
Premier Energy secures finance for Romania project
IPP Premier Energy has secured project financing of €100 million for a 200MW/400MWh BESS in Romania set to come online in late 2026 or early 2027. Československá obchodní banka, a.s. (ČSOB) provided the financing for the project, which Premier acquired late last year.
It will be one of the largest in the country when it comes online. Romania has become a hotbed of large-scale BESS development and construction in the past year or two, with high solar penetration, government subsidies and a favourable regulatory environment driving activity.
Our publisher Solar Media will hold the Energy Storage Summit Central Eastern Europe (CEE) 2026 on 6-7 October in Warsaw, Poland.
