Bulgaria adopts changes to protect pastures from PV development

The Bulgarian Parliament has adopted legal changes designed to safeguard specific land types from the construction of photovoltaic (PV) parks.

The changes establish that municipal pastures, meadows and grasslands will no longer be used for the purposes of developing renewable energy projects if the land has been subsidised over the previous three years. The reference to subsidies is to indicate that these pastures have been and could still be used by livestock farmers.

Projects that are in the midst of converting such land plots for renewable energy development will be able to complete the process under the old rules.

The amendments, proposed by Daniel Petrov from political party Vuzrajdane, were also supported by the party Green Movement. Daniela Bojinova, a representative of the latter party, stated that from its inception Green Movement has supported green energy development. However, she added that a fever for solar power plants is exerting pressure, especially on poorer municipalities, to turn certain land spaces into large PV parks, depriving livestock farmers from pastures. Bojinova expressed support for the proposed amendments to better balance the interests of PV developers and farmers and not to demographically endanger small settlements.

Bulgaria is expected to add between 1 GW and 1.5 GW of new solar PV capacity to the power grid in 2024.

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