The new planning system will require the Ministry of Energy, together with the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Agency for Regulation and Development of the Energy Market, to approve annual three-year forecasts of energy resource demand by region and economic sector by August.
Based on these forecasts, the authorities will prepare a three-year strategic plan for supplying consumers with energy resources. Both the forecasts and the strategic plan must be published by the end of October.
Three-year investment plans for the energy sector will then be developed by the end of November. The plans will identify priority energy projects, their main technical and economic indicators, sources of financing, required land and investment needs.
The investment plans must be approved and published by the end of each year. For each project, the state partner responsible for its implementation will prepare project documentation with the involvement of local and international specialists before announcing an open tender.
Projects will not be allowed to receive individual benefits or preferences outside the established framework, while projects not included in the investment plan cannot be managed under the new system.
The decree also prohibits preparing project documentation or arranging financing at the same time as construction or reconstruction work is already under way. The exception applies to projects financed entirely through private investment.
Energy strategy through 2050
The authorities have also been tasked with developing a concept for ensuring a stable supply of energy resources to consumers through 2050. The document is to be submitted to the Cabinet of Ministers and its approved version published by December. It will be updated every five years.
The concept will cover the country’s fuel and energy resource potential, long-term demand forecasts that take into account demographic changes, regional specialization and economic development, as well as plans for diversifying the energy mix.
It will also address the development of alternative energy sources, including renewable and nuclear power and energy storage systems, along with mechanisms for introducing energy-saving, digital and innovative solutions and gradually shifting to cleaner next-generation technologies.
