The Diplomat Bucharest

“Romania has a turbulent history on the topic of renewable energy. In 2012 we were in the top 10 worldwide, we were seen as a kind of El Dorado of renewables. Probably the schemes of that time could be slightly improved. In 2014, someone came and said stop everything, it’s not good, we stopped, we managed to make a little over 2000 MW in 4 years. 10 years have passed, we currently have 3,100 megawatts in wind power, most of which were done until 2014, practically nothing done after 2014 and 1,600 MW in solar and 1,500 in photovoltaic panels on roofs. In 2022 we have tens of thousands of megawatts in ATRs, we have enthusiasm, we have a lot of money and I am not saying this ironically. If we only look at the Modernization Fund, PNRR and the classic European funds, we probably exceed 14-15 billion euros for energy and from 2020, when we started to have access to money, we have almost nothing: 500 MW in solar and 72 MW in wind, a single project somewhere in Moldova. What should we do? We should reach 10,000 MW in wind, 10,000 MW in solar and 5,000 MW in rooftop PV so that we meet the targets that lead us to the decarbonization target agreed with the European Union,” Catalin Stancu, Associated Senior Expert, Horváth said during Green Energy Conference organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest. https://lnkd.in/dtp55kzn

“On the electricity market, now there is a certain effervescence related to all these potential new investments, especially in renewable energy. The question that is on everyone’s mind is: will they all be done, or which ones will be done, which ones will receive funding, which ones will be ready first? We see that sometimes the consumption is 5,000 – 6,000 megawatts, not to mention 4,000 somewhere around March-April. We are talking about tens of thousands of megawatts. Obviously, there are questions to which only time will give the answer, but the CETs in Bucharest must be done. Why? Any of the power plants in Romania, if it has a problem and stops, can be replaced from elsewhere. Romania’s interconnection capacity has increased, but the thermal energy needed to heat the city of Bucharest, the capital of Romania, cannot be replaced. Bucharest is ‘too big to fail’. The gas network can’t support it, the electricity distribution network can’t support it either. So, this is how this system that has reached its limits in the last two-three years, actually the last three-four winters, especially 2020-2021, needs to be modernized. Global warming helped us. If there were winters in Bucharest like 10-15 years ago, with -20 degrees or -15 degrees for a few weeks, the situation would have been cruel. Mild winters have helped us, but they will not help us forever,” Claudiu Cretu, MBA, General Manager, Electrocentrale Bucuresti (ELCEN) said during Green Energy Conference organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest. https://lnkd.in/dDxscnXj

“We are in a very important moment in the last 40 years from the point of view of the development that is happening in Romania. The last year was special from the point of view of the projects announced in the national energy system. It seems that we are on a good path. Hidroelectrica SA is at the vanguard of protecting the energy system in Romania, being one of the main stability pillars of this energy transition. It is the main goal of the company’s management team. Of course, we have a series of projects to renovate our power plants. The Vidraru project has a value of 188 million euros. Besides Vidraru, we also have Raul Mare Retezat, with a special production capacity, investment of over 136 million euros. There is a tender procedure for the Bradisor power plant, a project of over 100 million euros,” Radu Constantin, Member of Directorate, Hidroelectrica said during Green Energy Conference organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest. https://lnkd.in/dFxF2M7a

CIS Group signs contract for the construction of a photovoltaic park in Copșa Mică. The total investment for this project amounts to nearly 100 million RON and the park is expected to become operational at the beginning of next year. With a production capacity of 23 MW and a storage capacity of 4 MW, the photovoltaic park in Copșa Mică contributes to increasing renewable sources in the national energy mix and is part of CIS Group’s commitment to supporting the transition to a low-carbon economy. https://lnkd.in/djm2KjC6

Leasing activity in the Bucharest office market in the first half of 2024 saw new demand rise by 7 percent year-on-year, reaching 64,000 square meters, while total demand slightly decreased to 160,000 square meters, according to Colliers’ report on real estate market developments for the first half of the year. Contract renewals accounted for approximately 50 percent of transactions, driven by uncertainty over hybrid work. Additionally, there have been two consecutive quarters without new modern office completions and no deliveries are planned for the third quarter, marking the longest period without new office space since 2005. “If we look beyond the headline figures, which are solid, the office market presents a more nuanced picture. Cumulative demand over the past four quarters has exceeded 400,000 square meters, peaking in the first quarter of 2024. This reflects a 34 percent increase compared to the pre-pandemic annual average (between 2017 and 2019). This performance ranks as the second-best among major office markets in EMEA, just behind Gdansk in Poland and slightly ahead of London’s Docklands submarket. We interpret this to be a clear sign of the Bucharest office market maturing and transitioning into a new phase”, explains Victor Cosconel, Head of Leasing | Office & Industrial Agencies at Colliers. https://lnkd.in/dHvmi_Vc

“We have ambitious projects that are ongoing and in advanced stages. We have the project to modernise Unit 1 from Cernavoda, which will bring another 30 years of nuclear energy. We have the project of Units 3 and 4 for which we have a project company (EnergoNuclear) and we are in negotiations for an EPCM contract for these 2 units. The buildings are already in place, and we intend to put the future reactors into operation at the beginning of the 2030s. Units 3 and 4 will bring another 1,400 MW to the energy system in Romania. We have undertaken to bring at least 2000 MW in the next decade to Romania, which ensures the safety of the energy system and sustainability for decades. Keep in mind that the nuclear unit works for 60 years in 2 cycles (30 + 30),” Alexandru Visan, COO Societatea Nationala Nuclearelectrica SA said during Green Energy Conference organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest. https://lnkd.in/d3rJsjyv

“Usually, at the conferences, we notice that it is somehow like a custom: the minister comes, tells us how well the things are going, how extraordinary the future will be for Romania, another year passes, we find ourselves in the same position, 72 megawatts in wind power the year past and about 300 in photovoltaics. Another year will pass. We also have an electoral cycle to close this year, let’s see what happens in the future. I don’t want to be negative, but I would still like to have our moments of reality. Indeed, we will always be more optimistic, because we want to raise the country’s targets, we want to make money, because we represent the business. What is important in those studies is to see how we can achieve certain targets. What do we need? And here, indeed, unfortunately, we fall behind. Today we have a strategy on the table, which is less ambitious than what we had in the past in the PNIESC, which takes us to 2035 with targets for 2030. We have a PNIESC that has not yet been released and a ten-year network development plan that does not it is correlated with these two. Basically, we have three big pieces that should be the pillars of Romanian energy. All the same page and they are not,” Andrei Manea, Executive Director RPIA - Romanian Photovoltaic Industry Association said during Green Energy Conference organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest. https://lnkd.in/dYQgt_3N

“We still have many institutions that are involved directly or indirectly in what it means to carry out the steps of a project, and we consider that sometimes they rather hinder us. How are we compared to 2023? A little better, through the lens of the CfD calendar already announced. Finally, we have started the construction of several projects, in the order of hundreds of megawatts at the moment, compared to the 70 megawatts that we commissioned in 2023. I think if we look at that report, we’re talking about at least eight gigawatts, although our estimate was 11, which we have to have by 2030. How are we going to do that? It will be challenging to say the least, because we will reach the level of convergence in the last two or three years and we will hit the same things: lack of human resources, lack of implementation capacity and a bunch of other things,” Liviu Gavrila, Vice-president, RWEA - Romanian Wind Energy Association said during Green Energy Conference organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest. https://lnkd.in/ddScaXmq

“Regarding investments in projects aimed at the production and use of hydrogen, there are still steps to be taken. It is important to complete the legislation part and we do this in the working group established at the commission level, which is functional and at the end of September we will again have a debate on the topics related to the use of hydrogen in industry. Because the industry is a critical segment of the economy, and the lack of funding for projects that allow, first of all, re-technology, will make the Romanian industry uncompetitive. Energy storage is an extremely important topic, and we want to encourage the installation of photovoltaic panels, but also allow those beneficiaries to purchase batteries,” Oana Ozmen, Secretary of the Committee on Industries and Services, Deputy, Chamber of Deputies, Romanian Parliament said during Green Energy Conference organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest. https://lnkd.in/dnfKktTf

“Romania will request compensation from the EU council of ministers, given that energy prices in Eastern Europe are significantly higher than in Western Europe. Energy security is important, but fairness is just as important. We are in a European market where we respect all the regulations, the decarbonization calendar, etc., the support for the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, but when it comes to benefiting from prices similar or at least close to those in Western Europe or Central Europe, we are not in the same film at the moment and it is a subject that concerns me as well as the ministers from Bulgaria, Greece and others in the region. We will take steps to the European Commission to regulate this injustice,” Energy Minister Sebastian Burduja said during Green Energy Conference organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest. https://lnkd.in/dxMsGZw8