Cluj-based Finas Group develops new 60 MW solar park and transfers it to DRI

Finas Group, a Cluj-based company operating in the renewable energy sector in Romania, and DRI, the EU renewable arm of DTEK Group, the largest private energy investor in Ukraine, announce a new stage in their strategic partnership.

The two companies are building a new 60 MW solar park in Glodeni (Mureș County), which will cover 97 hectares and is located near the existing one. Preparatory construction began in May 2023, and the new solar park, Glodeni II, is expected to become operational in the summer of 2025. The new park it is expected to produce 86.4 GWh of electricity per year.

As in the first project, Finas Group will develop the park to the ready-to-build stage, and DRI will add value through its extensive engineering, supply chain management and operations expertise, as well as its flexible capital structure.

‘The sale of the park to DRI allows us to focus on new development projects, while our partner will bring the necessary expertise to manage and operate this major investment. This collaboration reflects our ongoing commitment to contribute to the expansion of renewable energy in Romania. At the same time, our greatest achievement is that all the projects we have sold are also constructed, thus demonstrating our ability to turn plans into concrete and functional realities’, declared Claudiu Șugar, CEO of Finas Group.

The two companies started their collaboration in December 2021, through the joint development of a 60 MW wind park in Ruginoasa, Iași County, the biggest wind farm built in Romania in a decade, followed by the Glodeni I solar park, with a capacity of 60 MW, in June 2022. Both projects have been producing energy since the beginning of 2024.

John Stuart, CEO of DRI, said: “Glodeni II is another step in DRI’s commitment to accelerate the energy transition in Romania, a country that is well placed to maximise its renewable energy potential and capacity. “We thank the Finas Group for once again partnering with us on this project. Together we are taking the next steps towards Romania achieving its 34% renewable energy target by 2030.”

Moreover, to strengthen its position in the green energy market, Finas Group, in collaboration with the Swiss investment fund ReCap, is developing several 200 MW solar projects, which include 135 MW in Corund (Harghita County) and 65 MW in Jibou (Sălaj County), with completion estimated for the spring of 2025. Finas also completed the construction in 2023 of a photovoltaic park with an installed power of 3 MWp in partnership with Datacor from Bistrița, in Domnești Township, and in Livezile Township, from the same county, a 50 MW ready-to-build park, which they hope to start building in 2025.

In total, Finas Group will reach over 500 MW of projects completed or under development, started in 2013. In the places where it already operates, the company has 250 MW of energy storage projects underway.

In 2023, Finas Group recorded a profit of EUR 8 million from all companies it manages (real estate, energy and HoReCa), of which EUR 5 million came from renewable energy. For 2024, Finas has budgeted a profit of 11 million euros.