Wind energy on the coast and in the sea territories will reduce electricity prices and help balance the market

In the first colder days of November, electricity prices rose, which once again triggered a wave of propaganda aimed at instilling fear in Bulgarian society about the security of supply and suggesting that coal-fired power plants should be preserved at all costs.

Such messages divert attention from the need to urgently accelerate the decarbonization of the electricity sector by unlocking the enormous potential of wind energy in Bulgaria both on the coast and in the seas. Wind farms will help balance the huge number of new photovoltaic plants in Bulgaria until the necessary amount of electricity storage capacity is introduced.

Electricity from wind power is cheaper than average wholesale market prices in Bulgaria and the region. It will directly replace the need to use much more expensive local coal plants or import electricity produced by gas plants in Greece.

Onshore, Bulgaria can build a minimum of 10 GW of wind power plants, with projects already in place for at least half of this potential. Their implementation is blocked by a massive information and political campaign organized by pro-Russian influence networks, which benefit from instilling irrational fears in local communities.

On the other hand, offshore wind energy in the Black Sea will enable Bulgaria to unlock the potential of a new industry, which will not only improve the country’s energy security, accelerate the energy transition, but also create enormous added value for the regional Black Sea economy.

Offshore wind power in the Black Sea will enable Bulgaria to unlock the potential of a new industry

According to current, largely conservative forecasts, Poland, Croatia, Romania and Bulgaria have the potential to implement offshore wind projects with a total capacity of 15 GW by the end of the decade. Furthermore, expectations are for the construction of a total of about 40 GW of capacity by 2050, which is still a small share of the 300 GW target included in the EU Offshore Renewable Energy Strategy.

The development of the sector requires the creation of a transparent and consistent regulatory framework that would encourage investors to develop specific projects, as well as overcoming technical obstacles related to the development of the electricity grid and port infrastructure. A targeted information campaign is also needed to counter the widespread myths about the negative impact of offshore wind on nature and biodiversity, which undermine public support for the development of the sector.

These are some of the main conclusions of the latest analysis by the Center for the Study of Democracy, which outlines a possible “Strategic Framework for Offshore Wind Energy in the Black Sea”. The Center presented the main conclusions during a roundtable in Sofia on November 21, 2024, with the participation of leading politicians, business representatives and experts in the field of wind energy, including Delyan Dobrev, Chair of the Energy Committee of the 50th National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria, Ana Miljanovic Rusan, Program Manager for Offshore Energy and Nature, Renewables Grid Initiative, Marta Sturzanu, Expert, Romanian Wind Association, Murat Durak, Chair, Turkish Offshore Wind Association, and Bernd Ockles, Technical Director for Renewable Resources, ERM.

By delaying the adoption of a regulatory framework for offshore wind energy, Bulgaria is lagging behind Romania, Greece and Turkey, which have a clear long-term vision and specific goals for the construction of offshore wind farms. Romania, which has already adopted a special law on offshore wind and is in the process of preparing the tender procedures for granting concessions to the most promising development zones, with expectations that between 3 and 7 GW of capacity will be built in the Black Sea by 2035. Turkey has also recently published a detailed roadmap for the development of offshore wind power plants, which envisages the implementation of offshore projects of up to 7 GW by 2040.

Greece is at the most advanced stage of development of the sector. The government adopted a special law on offshore wind farms in 2023, published a strategy for the commissioning of a minimum of 1.9 GW of plants by 2030 and expects to open the first concession tender for 6 promising zones in 2027.