Solar power in Bulgaria: Record production exceeds consumption!

Solar power in Bulgaria: Record production exceeds consumption!

In a remarkable progress, solar energy in Bulgaria exceeded the demand in the electricity system for two hours for the first time. This was confirmed by a report by the Bulgarian Electricity System (ESO) and data from the European umbrella organization Ento-E on June 30, 2025. The average performance achieved on June 20 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. over 6,500 megawatts (MW), while around 3,000 to 3,500 MW were exported during this period. This development marks an important milestone in the country's energy transition, whose future consists of covering 100 % of its electricity consumption from renewable sources. 40 % of the electricity from nuclear power plants, 30 % of fossil fuels and 30 % of renewable energies, such as [oekonews.at] (https://www2.oekonews.at/bulgariens-pv-produk- ueber-eBer-eber demand.

Solar energy covered about 12 % of the total electricity requirement in Bulgaria in 2023. It is predicted that the installed solar power increases to 3.9 GW by 2024, which corresponds to an annual generation of an estimated 5.3 TWH. This capacity corresponds to a per capita content of around 576 watts. In addition, a future increase in solar energy is expected to 14 % by 2024. Historically, Bulgaria's solar performance rose from 1 GW in 2020 to over 1,948 MW in 2022, a development that wikipedia documented in detail.

growth of the solar industry

The Bulgarian solar energy market will be estimated at a volume of 1.88 gigawatts by 2024 and could grow to 2.33 gigawatt by 2029, with an average annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.34 % during this period. Despite the challenges created by the Covid 19 pandemic, the market has reached the pre-crisis level again. Factors such as high sunlight and technological advances promote growth. However, there are obstacles that are due to the lack of incentives for solar power production, which underlines mordorintelligence.com.

The government plans to expand clean energy generation to expand renewable energies and the coal phase -out. In this context, large coal -fired power plant regions, including Stara Zagora, Kyustendil and Pernik, are affected. The deadlines for closing coal capacities are set to 2038 and 2040. The installed capacity of renewable energies was already 5,205 MW in 2022, with the market being shaped by main actors such as Solarpro Holding PLC and Jinkosolar.

regulatory initiatives and future projects

nationwide programs for the development of renewable energy actions include plans for the financial support of homeowners for the installation of solar power systems, with up to 70 % of the project costs, a maximum of 15,000 BGN. A total budget of around 59.8 million BGN, of which almost 50 million BGN come from the EU initiative Next Generationeu, is to be provided. In December 2022, the largest PV system Bulgaria was put into operation with an output of 124 MW, which illustrates the trend towards renewable benefits.

of this concentration on the solar industry and the need for decarbonization is critical, because the dependence on atomic energy brakes the market potential. The government will also support the development of new solar projects to promote competitiveness, while four new nuclear reactors are planned. These steps show that Bulgaria is on the way to a sustainable energy system.