SANY Renewable Energy begins construction of a 168 MW wind farm in Serbia

Chinese company SANY Renewable Energy has started construction of the Alibunar A and Alibunar B wind farms in north-eastern Serbia. The project will have a total installed capacity of 168 MW, with investment estimated at €240 million.

The project includes two wind farms: Alibunar A with a capacity of 96.6 MW and Alibunar B with a capacity of 71.4 MW. A total of 40 wind turbines will be installed, with expected annual electricity generation of around 480 GWh.

This is SANY Renewable Energy’s first large-scale investment project in wind energy in Serbia and an important stage in the company’s expansion in Central and Eastern Europe. Engineering, procurement and construction will be carried out by PowerChina Chengdu Engineering.

The project will receive Serbian state support through market premiums and 15-year contracts for difference, covering 70% of the installed capacity. The projects secured this support during the second round of renewable energy auctions.

According to SANY Renewable Energy representative Tang Chao, Serbia offers a favourable investment climate for renewable energy development, while the South Banat region has strong wind resources and flat terrain suitable for such projects.

The company states that Alibunar is a landmark example of Chinese-Serbian cooperation in green energy under the Belt and Road Initiative and the cooperation mechanism between China and the countries of Central and Eastern Europe.

The wind farm will include two 35/220 kV substations, one 220 kV switching substation and a 12.5 km transmission line. The local authorities of Alibunar municipality have expressed support for the investor and readiness to assist in the implementation of the project.

Comment by the Institute of Danube Research

The construction of the 168 MW Alibunar wind farm is a notable example of increasing investment activity in the renewable energy sector in the Balkans. For Serbia, the project has not only energy-related but also institutional significance, as it demonstrates the practical operation of state support mechanisms, auctions and long-term contracts for difference.

It is important that this project has a clearly defined production, financial and infrastructure logic: significant installed capacity, projected annual generation, grid connection and the involvement of a major international investor. This model increases market predictability and creates conditions for further capital inflows into renewable energy.

For the Danube-Balkan region, the development of wind energy is strategically important in the context of energy security, decarbonisation and reducing dependence on imported energy resources. The Serbian example also shows that countries in the region are increasingly using renewable energy as an instrument for economic modernisation and integration into the European energy space.

For Ukraine, this experience is important from the perspective of post-war reconstruction of energy infrastructure. The combination of competitive auctions, long-term guarantees for investors, local infrastructure support and international technological partnerships may be useful in developing new wind and solar energy projects.

Particular attention should be paid not only to the construction of generation facilities, but also to the development of grid infrastructure, balancing capacities and conditions for integrating new capacities into the power system. These factors will determine the effectiveness of the green transformation in the Danube-Black Sea region.