Energy Minister Burduja: “Last year, Romania put into operation an electricity production capacity almost 10 times higher than in 2022”

In 2023, Romania’s new commissioned power plants included: 496MW solar, 72MW wind and 56MW hydrocarbon. The total is 624MW of installed power, new production capacities now available to the national energy system. Compared to 2022, the total figure is almost 10 times higher (44MW hydrocarbons and 25MW solar were commissioned then), according to Sebastian Burduja, the Minister of Energy.

Moreover, if at the end of 2022 we had only 40171 prosumers, with a cumulative installed capacity of 417MW, at the end of 2023 the number of prosumers exceeded 100,000, with an installed capacity that most likely exceeded 1500MW, more than the power installed of the Cernavodă nuclear power plant. Sebastian Burduja, Minister of Energy: “The fact that in 2023 the new capacities put into operation were almost 10 times higher than the previous year shows that Romania is increasingly attractive for investors in the energy sector, especially in the green energy segment.

We expect that at the end of 2024 the increase will be even higher, given that we have managed to complete the financing of the projects from investment 1 – PNRR, which amounts to almost 1700MW. I expect that a large part of these investments will be completed by the end of the year, based on the commitment of the beneficiaries. Add the investment in the new gas plant at Iernut, a project blocked for years, with a real chance of commissioning in December 2024, which will add an installed power of 430MW to the national energy system. Plus a series of private investments, which did not call for government support, so the balance sheet for the current year will be even better.

If in 2023 Romania was a net exporter of electricity, after many years in which it relied more on imports, through these new investments we are even better positioned to reach our potential as a regional leader and energy hub for the entire region. This means more production, so the potential of reducing prices and bills for Romanians, but also greater competitiveness for the national economy, new jobs and accelerated development.”

Moreover, the Ministry of Energy is nearing the completion of the procedures for the implementation of Contracts for Difference (CfD), which will support, through two successive auctions, in 2024 and 2025, investments in the production of solar and wind energy with a total installed capacity of 5000MW. The benchmark price will be set for 15 years in a transparent and competitive manner, providing predictability to investors. The new capacities will mean even more electricity produced in Romania.

As for prosumers, the growth of this segment was really spectacular in 2023. ANRE data for 31.12.2023 is not yet available, but we know that the number of prosumers on November 1 had exceeded 101,000, with an installed capacity of 1298MW. ANRE estimates show that, most likely, the power installed at prosumers exceeds 1500MW today.

“The phenomenon of prosumers is in line with what we want for the future of the Romanian energy sector: decentralization, decarbonization, digitization. Prosumers are effectively building this future in 3D, and my commitment as energy minister is to support prosumers. They strengthen the resilience of electricity supply at the level of households in Romania, support the green transition process and achieve a high degree of digitization, which allows better management at the level of each point of consumption,” said Sebastian Burduja, Minister of Energy.