North Macedonia is considering building the long-delayed Čebren and Galishte hydropower project without a private partner after 14 unsuccessful tenders, with the investment potentially reaching €1.5bn, local media Vecer.press reported on September 29.

Čebren is planned as a reversible hydropower facility that could help balance North Macedonia's electricity system as the share of variable renewable energy, particularly solar and wind power, increases. Its storage capacity could also support the integration of additional renewable generation. The government also views the planned reservoirs as a potential additional water resource amid climate change, including for agricultural use.

Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski said the government was considering making the state the investor and that foreign financial institutions, including the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), had expressed interest in supporting the project.

“Now is the right time for the state to take a bolder step and become an investor,” Mickoski said, adding that, if preparations proceed as planned, construction could begin next year.

The government has been considering a state-led model since at least June, when Mickoski said a strategic decision was being prepared on whether the project could be implemented without a private partner.

He estimated at the time that the total investment, including interest costs, could reach up to €1.5bn and said discussions would also be held within state-owned power utility AD ESM.

Mickoski said government calculations indicate that the project would have a double-digit internal rate of return and a positive net present value, which he described as important factors in determining whether the state should undertake the investment.

The financing model remains unresolved. The Energy and Water Services Regulatory Commission (ERC) has proposed that citizens could also participate in financing the project by purchasing shares, according to the article.