Start of construction underway for three big solar parks in Romania

CCE Holding launched works at the site of its Horia1 solar park of 40 MW in Romania’s northwest, Engie is preparing to install a photovoltaic facility of 37.2 MW and PNE just sold a ready-to-build project of 61.5 MW.

Romania has joined the group of gigawatt-scale markets this year in terms of installed photovoltaic capacity within one year and the list of mature projects keeps getting longer. In fact, SolarPower Europe expects the country to reach 8.7 GW by 2027. The solar boom is fueled in all segments from prosumers to municipal authorities to transmission system operator Transelectrica.

Austria-based renewable energy developer CCE Holding said it started the construction of its first photovoltaic park in Romania and its biggest in Europe. The site for the facility with 40 MW in peak capacity is near Arad in the country’s northwest. It spans 50 hectares.

CCE Holding won EUR 3 million in funding through Romania’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan

The company said the Horia1 solar power plant would be connected to the grid by next autumn. It is envisaged to consist of modules of 590 W each. CCE Holding revealed that it secured financing from Raiffeisen Bank International.

The project was developed in cooperation with Banat Agri Group and Austria-based Frapag, according to the statement. The firm added that it has 980 MW under development in Romania and ten solar power projects in various stages.

Horia1 will benefit from EUR 3 million from the country’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP or, in Romanian, PNRR). The company won support in the first round of applications.

Engie to commission solar park north of Bucharest next year

Engie Romania said it would start the construction of a photovoltaic plant with a total peak capacity of 37.2 MW in Ariceștii Rahtivani north of the capital Bucharest. It added it is its fourth greenfield project.

The solar park will be built on an area of 57 hectares. The subsidiary of French energy giant Engie plans to commission the facility next year. It estimated the annual output at 57 GWh.

PNE preparing PV projects for construction to sell them

German renewables developer PNE said it sold a project in Romania in Dolj county, near the border with Bulgaria. It has reached construction maturity.

The project of 61.5 MW in peak terms was bought by an unnamed local firm, the statement adds. PNE said it is expected to be put into operation in 2025. The company noted that earlier this year it sold five projects in Romania with an overall 208 MW in peak capacity to a French corporation.

PNE aims to bring five solar power projects to ready-to-build phase next year

The latest transaction increased its total sales in the country to 571 MW in peak capacity. Some sites are in the counties of Constanța and Bihor.

The company also just completed the development of a project for 48.9 MW in peak capacity in Constanța. It stressed that it plans to get five more with an overall 436 MW in peak terms to a ready-to-build or RTB phase next year.

In addition, PNE is considering opportunities in the offshore wind segment. The government has just approved a draft law that should enable it to determine the maritime zones on the Black Sea.

But unlike photovoltaics, the wind power sector in Romania can’t seem to get off the ground again, which partly also reflects a Europe-wide slowdown.