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Main changes introduced by the new Law on Public Procurement
Some of the main changes introduced by the new Law on Public Procurement, approved in January 2019 and published in Official Gazette No. 24/19, include the following:
(...) • new provisions for the promotion of socially and environmentally responsible procurement.

To select the most advantageous tender, a contracting authority can determine whether to apply: (i) the lowest cost; (ii) the life-cycling costing approach; or (iii) the best price-to-quality ratio, as a contract award criterion. The latter may include qualitative, environmental and social aspects linked to the subject matter of the procurement. [109]
[109] Article 99 of the new LPP

Effective exploitation can only start after the granting of an exploitation licence, based on an environmental impact assessment and on technical and financial abilities; the concessionaire must request these within two years of the signature of the concession contract.

North Macedonia is a party to: the Energy Charter Treaty; the Energy Community; and the Agreement of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, including the Kyoto Protocol, and the Paris Agreement. In addition to national considerations, the energy policy of the country is geared towards transposing the EU energy acquis in terms not only of liberalization but also of energy security, energy efficiency and environmental objectives.

The Strategy for Energy Development in Macedonia by 2040, replacing a similar document from 2010 and running initially until 2030, is in preparation and should be adopted by the Government by the end of 2019. This Strategy will set the following objectives:
- renewable energy and energy-efficiency policies; - obligations undertaken to ratify international agreements, including an integrated strategy on energy and climate change.

The energy-efficiency policy is more specifically defined by the 2010 Strategy for Improvement of Energy Efficiency until 2020. (...) In July 2017, it adopted the Third Energy Efficiency Action Plan for the period 2016-20; the envisaged national energy saving target is 148.72 ktoe by 2018 and 226.27 by 2020. The planned target of 102.5 ktoe for 2016 was achieved.

A long-term strategy for the reconstruction of residential, public and commercial buildings is planned to be developed by 2030, in order to apply energy-efficiency measures and reduce environmental pollution. This will be implemented through three-years programmes.

The renewable energy policy is determined by the 2010 Strategy for Utilisation of Renewable Energy Sources by 2020 [19]. North Macedonia transposed the EU acquis regarding Renewable Energy Sources (RES),(...) on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources. The Directive requires the setting of targets as a percentage of the gross final energy consumption, and indicates that strong energy-efficiency measures should be applied.
[19] Ministry of Economy online information. Viewed at: http://iceor.manu.edu.mk/Documents/ICEIM/Strategies/Strategy%20for%20utilization%20RES.pdf.

According to State Statistical Office data, the share of Renewable Energy Sources (RES) was 18% in 2016, and 19.6% in 2017. According to the RES Action Plan, the percentage share of RES of final energy consumption should reach 23.9% by 2020, and 25.0% by 2025. This should be achieved through the construction of new RES plants, and through reinforced energy-efficiency measures.

Gross production of renewable energy, 2012-16
Energy 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Total 312.92 370.15 343.14 389.28 368.56
Source: State Statistical Office's Makstat Database. Viewed at: http://makstat.stat.gov.mk/PXWeb/pxweb/en/MakStat/.