Ljubiša Bošković, Founder of Sistem-MNE
Integrating wind, solar, and storage for Montenegro’s next fifty years
Ljubiša Bošković, a mechanical engineer, founder of Sistem-MNE discusses with Diplomacy & Commerce Montenegro’s energy future, local engineering skills, and over 20 years of renewable energy development. He has been professionally involved in the energy transition for almost two decades, making it more than just a global trend. Bošković and his team have built local engineering competence to accomplish ambitious energy projects, including the country’s first small-scale solar systems and big wind, solar, and battery storage projects. What began with kilowatt capabilities has developed into a portfolio of hundreds of megawatt-scale projects.
In terms of the growth of renewable energy sources in Montenegro, what role do you see sistemmne playing?
Sistem MNE started as an engineering company. Our capital from the start was not big financial funds, but expertise, hard work, technical solutions, and the capacity to select a location, analyze its energy potential, and, after a protracted development process, transform it into a meaningful investment project. After more than two decades of work, we can say that we have seen virtually every stage of Montenegro’s renewable energy development, from small stand-alone photovoltaic systems and rooftop solar power plants to the country’s first large wind farms, and now to wind, solar, battery storage, and high-voltage infrastructure projects spanning hundreds of megawatts.
What exactly does it take to build a large-scale power plant?
The process of developing a largescale power plant begins before the first construction machinery gets on site. The process entails identifying a suitable location, assessing the available energy resource, resolving property and land ownership issues, conducting multi-year measurements, preparing planning, technical, and environmental documentation, ensuring compliance with spatial plans, securing a connection to the power grid, and obtaining a variety of approvals and permits. In the case of wind farms, this process can take five to seven years. This is where sistem-mne’s greatest strength lies. Our team includes engineers from several disciplines as well as specialists who realize that energy is more than just providing electricity. It is a complicated system that necessitates the combination of electrical engineering, civil engineering, mechanical engineering, spatial planning, geodesy, environmental protection, law, economics, and finance. On projects of this size, no single discipline suffices.
Which projects do you believe are the key references in the development of wind energy?
One of Sistem MNE’s key references is our involvement in the development of the Možura Wind Farm, one of Montenegro’s first major wind energy projects. The project highlighted Montenegro’s ability to attract foreign funding and successfully implement complicated energy developments. Today, we’re transferring the knowledge gathered from previous projects to a completely new generation of advances. Sinjajevina 1 and Sinjajevina 2 stand out, with a total planned capacity of around 488 MW. These projects are on a very different scale than when Montenegro first began developing wind energy. However, Sinjajevina is about much more than wind turbines. Developing an energy complex of this size necessitates new access roads, dozens of kilometers of internal infrastructure, high-voltage substations, a connection to the 400 kV transmission network, and infrastructure that might have far-reaching development implications for northern Montenegro. Another significant project is the 118.8 MW Bijela Wind Farm, which sistem-mne has taken from first wind measurements and project documentation to an advanced level of development and the addition of an international investor. The 88 MW Korita Wind Farm highlights the continuation of our efforts on large-scale wind energy projects. These projects have more in common than just the quantity of megawatts involved. Their true value resides in their domestic engineering expertise, which can take a project from essentially nothing to attracting the interest of major international energy firms and investment institutions.
In addition to developing wind energy, you have been active in the solar business. How has that adventure progressed?
Sistem-MNE has focused on solar energy since its inception. We began designing and installing solar systems for homes, businesses, public buildings, and tourist attractions in 2006. We obtained particularly significant expertise by implementing over 1,000 off-grid systems, many of which were located in remote and difficult-to-access areas without an electricity grid connection. What began as kilowatts is now measured in hundreds of megawatts. Prediš, a solar project in Cetinje with a planned capacity of 227.9 MWp DC/200 MW AC and a connection to the 400 kV transmission network, exemplifies this progression. Prediš demonstrates how significantly the concept of a ‘solar power plant’ has evolved. A modern project of this size is more than just a field of photovoltaic panels. It necessitates extensive high-voltage infrastructure, substations, transmission lines, and complex control systems, as well as the rising use of BESS – Battery Energy Storage Systems. Indeed, energy storage marks the sector’s next important stride forward.
Do you see a future for renewable energy in merging various technologies?
We do not see the future of renewable energy by examining individual technology in isolation. We see it in their synergy. Solar power generates electricity at specific times of the day, but wind has a different generation profile. Battery storage devices allow you to store some of that energy and provide it when the power system needs it most. This is why future energy projects will progress from solar plants or wind farms to integrated energy systems. We are already implementing this technique at the regional level by developing the Planik hybrid energy project in Republika Srpska, which combines around 80 MW of solar and 36 MW of wind capacity. This mix of solar, wind, and energy storage, we believe, represents the European energy sector’s future trajectory.
What significance will the development of the power transmission grid have for the next phase of the energy transition?
Building a power plant is no longer sufficient. One of the most significant hurdles to the future expansion of renewable energy will be the capacity of the power transmission grid. As a result, sistem-mne has long advocated for a more defined regulatory framework governing grid connections, co-location, and the collaborative development of connecting infrastructure by numerous investors. There is no economic reason for burdening the natural environment with redundant infrastructure when many projects, supported by proper technical and legal procedures, could efficiently employ shared corridors, substations, or grid connection facilities. This will necessitate a new set of regulations. The regulatory framework must strike the appropriate balance between preserving the public interest and creating the conditions for private capital to develop.
Montenegro has the capacity to produce far more renewable energy than it needs for domestic consumption. What might this imply for the country’s economy?
Over the next decade, Montenegro has a rare potential to generate much more electricity from renewable sources than is required to meet current domestic demand. But that brings up an even more significant question: What will we do with that energy? We can export it. However, we can take the next step and think more strategically. Access to huge amounts of green energy might lay the groundwork for recruiting new companies, data centers, energy storage facilities, and other technology-driven investments that require consistent and competitively priced electricity when deciding where to put their operations. At that time, energy becomes more than just another economic sector. It becomes a tool for the country’s economic and development agenda.
How crucial is local knowledge for initiatives of this size, especially when dealing with international investors and large sources of capital?
Our experience at sistem-mne has given us another valuable lesson. Developing plants with capabilities of several hundred megawatts demands significant capital. However, capital alone is not sufficient. Local expertise is required. You need experts who understand the topography, the power system, institutions, spatial planning, local populations, and the numerous technical and administrative aspects that ultimately determine whether a project remains a concept on paper or begins to generate electricity. That is why we regard our development strategy as collaboration between local engineering talent and international capital. First and foremost, we are engineers. Our biggest value is not the quantity of capital at our disposal, but the ideas we can conceptualize, execute, and bring to completion. After more than two decades in the business, we feel we have proved that a Montenegrin company can compete on equal terms with significant foreign investors and construct projects worth hundreds of megawatts rather than tens.
If you were to describe one essential message regarding Montenegro’s energy future, what would it be?
The energy shift is expected to take decades. The countries that flourish will not necessarily have the most sunshine or the strongest winds. Those that can combine natural resources with experience, infrastructure, contemporary legislation, and responsible capital will have an advantage. Montenegro has the natural resources to do just that. We are responsible for building everything else. sistem-mne believes that the future is not about selecting between solar and wind. It is in integrating the two, combining them with energy storage, a strong and resilient power grid, and domestic engineering expertise capable of putting all of these pieces together to form a fully operational energy system. Because the end goal isn’t just to construct another power plant. The goal is to establish energy infrastructure that will generate long-term benefit for Montenegro over the next fifty years.
SISTEM-MNE IN NUMBERS
• 20+ years of expertise with renewable energy
• 1,000+ off-grid solar systems delivered
• 488 MW the combined planned capacity of the Sinjajevina 1 and Sinjajevina 2 projects
• 227.9 MWp DC / 200 MW AC The Prediš solar plant proposed capacity
• 118.8 MW Bijela Wind Farm
• 88 MW Korita Wind Farm
• 80 MW solar + 36 MW wind Planik hybrid energy project in Republika Srpska
• 400 kV a grid connection voltage of the new generation of energy projects