Prices of electricity from wind, hydropower and biomass will be increased from July 1, Bulgaria's State Commission for Energy and Water Regulation (DKEVR), said in a statement.
The intentions for the price changes of electricity from renewable energy sources follow closely the adoption of the Renewable Energy Act, that has been labeled as restrictive to investments in the field.
Biomass electricity prices will grow by 16.41% to BGN 195.03 per MW/h for power plants with a capacity of up to 5 MW/h running on agricultural waste. At present, there are no such plants in Bulgaria, but the country plans to build capacities worth up to BGN 1 B.
The cost of electricity generated by low-head and medium-head hydropower plants with a capacity of 200 KW/h - 10 000 MW/h will increase by over 4.50%.
The sharpest fluctuation will be in prices of electricity from photovoltaics with a capacity of up to 30 KW/p (kilowatts-peaks). Electricity generated by solar power will drop by 17.53-25.39% to BGN 576.50 per MW/h.
The decrease in prices of electricity from solar power comes days after the introduction of a ban on the construction of such facilities on fertile lands belonging to 1st-4th category. The regulation was part of amendments to the Protection of Agricultural Lands Act passed at the end of last week.
The final version of the power rates will be approved in end-May. Before that, the tariffs will be discussed at an open session of DKEVR scheduled for May 25.