Macedonia is adding renewable energy capacity faster than planned, and according to Energy, Mining and Mineral Resources Minister Sanja Bozhinovska, the Energy Community Secretariat has confirmed it. The minister posted the message on social media and repeated it at the fifth Annual Solar Conference of the Macedonian Solar Association, "Solar Macedonia".

According to the Energy Community's assessment, the share of renewables in electricity generation rose from 25.9% in 2022 to 32.2% in 2023. The report singles out Macedonia and Albania as the region's leaders in developing solar photovoltaic capacity. The share of renewables in gross final energy consumption in 2023 was 20.2%.

This is where the numbers need a second reading. The minister talks about a national target of 38% renewables in gross final energy consumption by 2030. In the material on the Energy Community's assessment and in the updated National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) 2025-2030, the 2030 target is given as 31.6%. Which figure applies, and are they even measuring the same thing? And one more small detail: the freshest figures in the assessment are from 2023, while it is now 2026.

The second message matters more than the praise. Bozhinovska warned that renewable capacity cannot keep growing indefinitely if the grid isn't ready to safely absorb the extra electricity. That's why annual energy infrastructure development plans are being announced, which will set out in advance where there is room for connection, within what timeframe and what infrastructure is needed. The aim is to abandon an approach in which a power plant can be built before anyone has sorted out its grid connection and stability.

The updated NECP foresees a gradual phase-out of coal by 2030, battery storage, modernisation of the transmission and distribution networks and electrification of transport. The target for total greenhouse gas emissions in 2030 is 6.72 million tonnes of CO₂-equivalent, a 46.1% reduction compared to 1990.

Renewables growing faster than planned is good news. The bad news is that the plan for the grid is still on its way. How many investors are already queuing for a connection - and who pays if the grid can't handle the energy everyone is producing so quickly?