Introduction

In recent years, Montenegro, a small country on the Adriatic coast, has become an unexpected leader in rooftop solar energy. With more than 2,000 hours of sunshine per year, the country’s natural potential has always been evident, but innovative policy design has truly driven adoption. Over the past few years, solar panels have begun to spread across the rooftops of family homes, small businesses, public institutions, and, increasingly, multi-unit residential buildings. Almost 70 MWp of rooftop solar capacity has been installed, making Montenegro a regional frontrunner in prosumer deployment. However, instead of leaving solar energy to wealthier households able to afford panels, Montenegro created a financing model that requires no upfront payments. Citizens simply pay monthly instalments equal to or lower than their previous electricity bills, making solar energy accessible to everyone, including low- and middle-income families.

This article presents Montenegro’s solar journey – from early pilot projects to nationwide adoption – highlighting how inclusive financing, streamlined regulation, and public trust can deliver results. For building professionals across Europe, it offers concrete insights into how to scale rooftop photovoltaic systems while ensuring that the benefits of the energy transition are shared broadly and fairly.

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_{Figure 1. Location of Montenegro (source: Wikimedia Commons)} 

From first installations to mass uptake

The story began in 2021, when the state-owned energy utility EPCG founded a dedicated subsidiary, Solar Gradnja, to manage photovoltaic deployment. The company quickly launched the programmes Solari 3000+ and Solari 500+, targeting private homes and small businesses. Early installations in 2022 and 2023 demonstrated feasibility and created public confidence (see Figure 2).

By the end of 2023, these projects had delivered around 30 MW of capacity. In 2024, momentum shifted to a much larger programme, Solari 5000+, aimed at equipping thousands of additional rooftops, including low-rise apartment buildings up to four storeys [1]. Thanks to streamlined permitting rules and lessons learned from earlier phases, deployment accelerated. By late November 2024, Solar Gradnja reported 65 MWp connected across about 6,500 households and businesses – an impressive figure for a country of approximately 600,000 people. This achievement is not only technical but also social. The model designed in Montenegro has ensured that access to renewable energy does not remain the privilege of wealthier households but becomes a shared national project [2].

_{Figure 2. Panel installation in the municipality of Nikšić (source: [2]).} 

Why the financing model matters

What truly distinguishes Montenegro’s approach is not just the number of panels installed, but the way citizens were brought on board. In a country with modest average incomes and limited household savings, demanding large upfront investments for solar systems would have excluded the majority. Instead, EPCG introduced a zero-upfront model: the utility provides a photovoltaic system, while participants repay the cost through monthly instalments aligned with their previous electricity bills.

This means that a family pays no more than it used to for power, and in some cases, the bill is even lower. After the system is repaid – usually within seven to ten years – the electricity generated is essentially free. The scheme therefore eliminates the biggest barrier to adoption: the need for initial capital or access to cheap credit. For lower- and middle-income households, pensioners, and other vulnerable groups, this design has been decisive [3].

In effect, Montenegro has ensured that the benefits of solar power – lower energy costs, protection from market volatility, and environmental gains – are available to those who need them most, but not only to affluent early adopters.

Social and environmental impact

The social rationale is clear: this model allows households to escape from energy poverty and stabilise their expenses. At the same time, the environmental impact is tangible. Rooftop systems installed by the banks, schools, and companies such as Erste Bank in Podgorica are already generating around 85,000 kWh per year, avoiding the emission of roughly 30 tonnes of CO₂ annually – the equivalent of planting 2,500 trees [4].

These cumulative effects are significant. As electricity prices spiked across Europe, citizens in Montenegro with rooftop systems experienced reduced bills and greater energy security. For EPCG, the distributed generation also reduces dependence on expensive imports, contributing to national energy sovereignty.

Alignment with Europe’s new legislative framework

The inclusiveness of Montenegro’s model aligns closely with the recast European directives adopted in 2023. The Energy Efficiency Directive (Directive (EU) 2023/1791) requires Member States to place special emphasis on people affected by energy poverty, vulnerable customers, and low- and middle-income households when designing energy-saving measures [5]. It also obliges governments to monitor the distributional impacts of efficiency programmes. Montenegro’s ‘same bill, no deposit’ design is a textbook example of how to meet these requirements in practice.

Similarly, the Renewable Energy Directive (Directive (EU) 2023/2413, known as RED III) raises the Union’s 2030 renewable energy target to at least 42.5%, with an aspirational target of 45%. Crucially, it also streamlines permitting for rooftop photovoltaics (PV), recognising these systems as the fastest and least disruptive way to expand capacity [6]. Montenegro’s nationwide rollout of rooftop photovoltaics, with thousands of prosumers integrated into the grid, illustrates precisely the kind of transformation envisaged in RED III.

Looking ahead

By early 2025, the rooftop capacity had approached 70 MW, with projections pointing to 100 MW by the end of the year. Beyond individual rooftops, plans are in place for larger utility-scale solar farms and installations on industrial facilities, which will complement the distributed generation base [7]. In addition, the Solari 5000+ programme has opened the door to balcony-mounted photovoltaic panels by including low-rise apartment buildings, although they are not yet widespread.

Yet the core lesson remains clear: inclusive design unlocks mass adoption. By ensuring that no household was asked to invest money it could not afford, Montenegro has created a prosumer movement that is socially broad, environmentally impactful, and economically rational. The model has demonstrated that even in a relatively low-income context, it is possible to achieve rapid progress in the energy transition – if financing and regulation are designed with equity in mind.

Conclusion

Montenegro’s experience proves that the energy transition can be both ambitious and fair, positioning it as a leader in Southeast Europe. More importantly, the way this transformation was structured – zero upfront cost, easy repayment, and inclusion of vulnerable groups – offers a blueprint for others. The next steps will include balcony-mounted photovoltaic panels, making solar energy accessible even in dense urban areas. Rooftop by rooftop, balcony by balcony, the country is building not only clean power but also public trust in the energy transition.

References

CDM.me. (14 August 2023). Solarni paneli uskoro i na stambenim zgradama do četiri sprata. https://www.cdm.me/ekonomija/solarni-paneli-uskoro-i-na-stambenim-zgradama-do-cetiri-sprata/

EPCG Solar Gradnja. (7 June 2023). Postavljeni prvi solarni paneli u sklopu projekta Solari 3000+ i Solari 500+. https://epcg-sg.com/lat/postavljeni-prvi-solarni-paneli-u-sklopu-projekta-solari-3000-i-solari-500/

Klima101.rs. (25 July 2025). Solarna elektrana sa 0 eura početnog troška: Kako je Crna Gora napravila uspješan okvir za kupce-proizvođače. https://klima101.rs/prozjumeri-crna-gora-bez-investicije/

Erste Bank. (28 July 2023). Solarni paneli na krovu zgrade Erste banke u Podgorici. https://www.erstebank.me/sr_ME/saopstenja/2023/7/28/solarni-paneli-na-krovu-zgrade-erste-banke

European Parliament and Council of the EU. (2023). Directive (EU) 2023/1791 on energy efficiency (recast). Official Journal of the European Union. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32023L1791

European Parliament and Council of the EU. (2023). Directive (EU) 2023/2413 on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources (recast). Official Journal of the European Union. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32023L2413

Vijesti.me. (15 January 2024). Nećemo stati dok svi objekti u Crnoj Gori koji imaju uslova ne postave solarne elektrane na svojim krovovima. https://www.vijesti.me/vijesti/ekonomija/689692/necemo-stati-dok-svi-objekti-u-crnoj-gori-koji-imaju-uslova-ne-postave-solarne-elektrane-na-svojim-krovovima