Macedonia's Parliament elected Aco Ristov as the new president of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) with 68 votes in favor and 15 against, replacing Marko Bislimovski who resigned in February.

Ristov is a graduate electrical engineer with three decades of experience in energy, hydropower, and infrastructure systems. The ruling coalition presented him as "an exceptionally qualified professional who meets all legal requirements."

The opposition reacted sharply to the appointment. SDSM coordinator Oliver Spasovski claims Ristov owns three small hydropower plants and has business interests through the companies Alfa Engineering, Hidroenergji Group, and MHC Kozja Reka, which constitutes a conflict of interest for regulating energy prices.

Levica MP Amar Mecinovik announced that the appointment would be challenged before the Energy Community in Vienna, claiming that independence criteria are being violated. "The regulator is not getting an arbiter, but a man from the energy business with partisan baggage," Mecinovik declared.

Additional concern is raised by the fact that Ristov's wife, Danka Ristova, was recently appointed to the Judicial Council, which the opposition sees as part of systematic placement of party cadres in regulatory bodies. Citizens facing rising energy bills are demanding truly independent oversight of prices.