GAP-JOURNAL 2012/13 - AFA

53
Potential Wind Power Markets
Slovakia
In Slovakia, nuclear power plants were responsible for 54% of power generation on
average in the period 2009-2011, whereas thermal and hydro plants, over the same period
of time, accounted for 19% and 17%, respectively. Wind had anegligible share in
the country’s power generation mix in 2011 (0.02%). Total installed wind capacity was
only 3.1 MW at the end of 2011. The Slovakian NREAP includes awind energy capacitytarget
of350 MW by 2020. Sincethe authorities stopped granting approvals forwind
farms in2009, arguing that they threaten the stability ofthe grid, itwill be challenging
to meet the 2020 target though. The ongoing grid capacity review has not yet come to
an end. Concerning Slovakia’s support scheme, power production from renewables is
promoted by mandatory off-take agreements with distribution system operators and a
feed-in tariff, guaranteed for 15years. The government is expected to revise the support
mechanism turning to ascheme ofperiodic reverse auctions, already announced in
2010. Developers would berequired to bid for afeed-in tariff in regions where grid
capacityhas been allocated. However, the introduction ofthis mechanism has continued
to be postponed since 2010, also due tothe pending grid capacity issue. (EWEA 2013:
102-105)
Slovenia
Nuclear power and conventional thermal resources are predominant inthe Slovenian
power generation mix, amounting to38.7% and 37.8% of production in2011, respectively.
Hydro power accounted for 23.1% of production, while other renewables contributed
less than 1% in 2011. The wind energycapacity in Slovenia was only0.03 MW
at the end of 2011. Thus, the country is lagging behind the wind power trajectory ofits
NREAP, which was supposed tobeat2MW in 2011. By 2020, the government is aiming
for acumulative wind installed capacity of 106 MWwithin the NREAP. Slovenia
adopted two support mechanisms for renewables, afeed-in tariff and afeed-in premium
scheme. The feed-in tariff scheme is only for facilities ofless than 5MW, while the
feed-in premium scheme (difference between reference costs and market price) is available
for all wind farms. The exclusion of bigger wind farms from the feed-in scheme
negatively affects the attractiveness ofinvestments tointernational developers and suppliers
specializing inlarge projects. Also administrative procedures, both for building
permits and grid connection, are burdensome and opaque. Another obstacle tothe implementation
ofwind power installations in Slovenia is that, although there is amid-