Research shows that every hour the Earth receives enough energy to sustain the planet's energy consumption for a year. Although we are still technically limited and can only use a small fraction of the solar radiation that reaches the ground, it is expected that, over time, solar energy systems will be used on an increasing scale.
Renewable energy, virtually unlimited
Support for achieving climate targets
New jobs, including through job conversion
ROMANIA MAKES PROGRESS IN SOLAR ENERGY
In recent years, many solar energy systems have been implemented, and this beneficial situation has also been due to the involvement of the government, which has provided support schemes for solar energy production. As a result, many solar parks and photovoltaic installations have been built in Romania.
Romania's potential is high due to climatic conditions and high levels of solar radiation. Romania has a good solar coverage, with 210 sunny days per year and an annual solar energy flux of between 1,000 kWh/m2/year and 1,300 kWh/m2/year. The regions with the highest potential, at around 1,387 kWh/m2/year, are Oltenia, Muntenia, Dobrogea and southern Moldavia. Specialists also estimate that of the 7.5 million individual homes, 3.4 million would be suitable for the installation of photovoltaic systems.
In the year 2023, in Romania solar panels with an output of more than 1,000 MWThe investment totalled around one billion euros, much of which came from the state through the "Green House Photovoltaic" programme.
INVESTMENT IN SOLAR POWER GENERATION WILL CONTINUE
Transelectrica has registered ATRs (Avis Technique de Racordare) of more than 10,000 MW. Although, there is a possibility that not all of these projects will materialise, we can anticipate that from 2024 onwards, several thousand MW will enter the system from solar energy systems.
Large-scale projects
Major energy companies have taken important steps to develop solar energy projects. Some examples:
In 2021, OMV Petrom has announced that it will build, in partnership with Complexul Energetic Oltenia (CE Oltenia), four photovoltaic parks with a total capacity of 450 MW. They are expected to be commissioned in 2024. Franck Neel, member of the OMV Petrom Management Board responsible for Gas and Energy said:
"We aim to bring more than 1 GW of renewable energy capacity online by 2030, including through partnerships. The installed capacity of the four PV parks will increase by a third the total national installed solar power capacity, which currently stands at around 1.4 GW."
Nofar Energy bought the largest photovoltaic park in RomaniaThe 255 MW power plant is located in Corbii Mari in Dâmbovița. The park is expected to be operational in 2024, will inject 362 GWh per year into the energy system and reduce the carbon footprint by over 200,000 tonnes. Nofar inaugurated the 130 MW photovoltaic park in Rătești in 2023.
INTERNATIONAL SOLAR ALLIANCE
At COP28, Romania has joined the International Solar Alliance; our country's commitment is to install more than 8 GW of solar power capacity by 2030, representing 24% of gross final consumption of electricity from renewable sources.
The Alliance's objectives include providing technical and financial assistance to member countries, ensuring access to solar energy for one billion people and reducing the cost of solar energy by 60% by 2030.
INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT
Increasing renewable energy production raises the issue of infrastructure. According to infoclima.ro, Transelectrica has secured €56.2 million through the REPowerEU component of the NREPP to finance three key investment projects aimed at making the electricity transmission network more efficient and modernizing it. The objectives are to increase flexibility, address bottlenecks in the electricity grid and facilitate accelerated integration of additional renewable energy capacity.
