On the 16th-17th of March, the Danube Transnational Programme (DTP) STRIDE project was introduced to public authorities and stakeholders during the National Conference on “Energy Management in Municipalities & Investments in Sustainable Energy” at the Borovets (Hotel) in Bulgaria. At the National Conference, the Chairman of the Bulgarian Energy and Mining Forum (BEMF), Mr. Ivan Hinovski, and the BEMF Project Manager and energy expert, Mr. Anton Ivanov, presented the STRIDE project and the finalised project outputs to representatives of the central government, municipalities, energy agencies and other stakeholders. The challenges and opportunities for smart grids in Bulgaria, as identified through the STRIDE project, were introduced by Mr. Anton Ivanov to the participants.

Mr. Ivanov informed the audience about the conclusions of the regional analysis of Bulgaria’s current energy situation, the objectives of the STRIDE strategy for smart grids development and action plans. The targeted directions for the future work on the project were presented. Measures for more active and effective participation of energy consumers in the market were made clear.

Highlighted by the presentation of the STRIDE project was the importance for all actors in the supply chain to update their knowledge of new technologies to include the huge potential of smart grids. In this regard, a link to the Bulgarian version of the STRIDE Good Practice guide, along with the STRIDE training materials, were provided to the participants.

Mr. Ivan Hinovski then presented a general concept for energy cooperatives with participation of municipalities, followed by a presentation on good practices for energy cooperatives from Europe by the European Climate Foundation.

To conclude, discussions were held on the introduction of measures to decrease energy poverty by energy efficiency measures and policies, and also on municipal energy management systems and their role in attracting of funding.