Power System Improvement Project for Macedonia

The Power System Improvement Project for Macedonia aims to achieve the following: 1) increase the efficiency of hydropower generation; 2) expand the generating capacity of the major hydropower plants through rehabilitation; 3) increase system operating efficiency and enable the electric company to optimize operation of its power generation and transmission facilities through reducing costs; 4) begin reducing high losses in the electricity distribution system; 5) facilitate the development of independent power producers, with the initial plants being mini-hydropower plants; and 6) help reintegrate Macedonia's power company (ESM) into UCPTE (the Western European Electricity network) by improving its system controls. The project consists of three components: 1) rehabilitating the six largest hydropower plants in Macedonia, which represent 91 percent of the country's hydropower capacity; 2) improving the energy management system including modernizing data acquisition and installing remote controls for the power system, completing the dispatch center, and improving telecommunications; and 3) beginning the rehabilitation of the electricity distribution system