Skopje, 21 September 2022 (MIA) – Minister of Environment and Physical Planning Naser Nuredini says there have been no proposals for construction of hydro power plants in North Macedonia since he took the post. “Investments are possible if the environment is not harmed. The ministry has decided to terminate 5-7 contracts for such hydro plants at Shar Mountain,” Minister Nuredini told TV21. He adds that the contracts refer to plants which construction has not even started. On the already built hydro plants at Shar Mountain, which is now a national park, he says concessions are given for a 20-year period and they will afterwards be undertaken by the state that would then decide whether to continue their operation or close them. Asked if there were attempts to influence the non-termination of the contracts, the Environment Minister says no one has interfered in his work and decisions. “There were no such demands but I have received support to stop those plants in protected areas, such as Shar Mountain. We have also discussed the two plants in the Mavrovo National Park and their termination as well, since we have a decision by the Standing Committee of the Bern Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitatsto to stop their construction,” says Nuredini.