Eighty-five million five hundred and sixty thousand euros. That is the cost of renovating nine state student dormitories, six resource centres for pupils with special needs and one pupils' dormitory, spread across seven cities - Skopje, Ohrid, Bitola, Prilep, Stip, Strumica and Veles. The deadline is December 2031.

Most of these buildings were built in the fifties and sixties of the last century. One of them in Bitola dates back to the 18th century. Students lived in them for decades in conditions anyone who passed through knows by heart.

Where the money comes from

The structure is clear: 60 million euros is a loan from the German development bank KfW, 21 million euros is a non-repayable EU grant through the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF), and 3.85 million euros comes from the Ministry of Education and Science.

So the largest share is a loan the state will repay, not a gift. That is not an objection to the project, but a fact worth knowing when you read a headline about "EU support worth millions".

What the money buys

The aim is deep energy renovation - structure, installations and the systems that consume energy. The expected results are a reduction in consumption of around 56 percent per building and in carbon dioxide emissions of around 49 percent. Annually that is a saving of around 7,700 megawatt hours and around 3,400 tonnes less carbon dioxide. Renewables should cover around 12 percent of total consumption, and four buildings will approach the near-zero energy building standard.

Stefano Ellero, head of the Cooperation Section at the EU Delegation, delivered the best line of the whole presentation: "The cheapest and cleanest energy is the energy that is never used."

Six years is a long time

The project runs in three phases, and the first is already showing results at buildings in Skopje. That is a good starting point, but 2031 is far away. A student enrolling in their first year now will have finished a master's degree before the dormitory is done.

And here is the real test of projects like this. The 56 percent energy saving is a figure from project documentation. Whether it will be felt in the price of accommodation for students, or whether the saved energy simply stays a saving for the institution - the announcement does not say. And that is exactly the number a student will see.