According to data published by state-owned power grid operator Transelectrica (TEL.RO), Alinso secured a contract to connect a 5-megawatt project to the grid at the end of last year, with the project set to be made operational in nine months’ time.
Company representatives did not answer by deadline if the solar project had been finalized, nor did they provide the value of the investment or say if more such projects would follow.
According to the information available, funds of around EUR2 million are required to install 1 megawatt in a solar park, which means Alinso’s investment in the solar park nearby Ploiesti could amount to EUR10 million. In terms of installed capacity, the solar park built by the Belgian group is the largest built so far in Romania.
Ploiesti West Park is the biggest industrial park in Romania to be developed in the middle of the real estate crisis. Investments in the park started in 2008 when most companies were fleeing this segment. According to the latest information available, the overall area of the project is 250 hectares, and it accommodates 200,0000 sq m of logistical and industrial spaces.
The main factor that attracts investors to solar energy is the very generous support scheme of the Romanian state. Solar energy is in fact the most privileged out of all forms of renewable energy, with each megawatt produced in this way being rewarded with 6 green certificates. Each certificate is worth around EUR55 currently. Apart from these certificates, producers can sell their energy on the free market unless they use it for their own consumption, so they also get the market price on top of the six green certificates. This scheme was devised by the Romanian state in order to comply with European requirements regarding the share of green energy consumption to national consumption in 2020, which is 38% of total consumption in the case of Romania.
Since renewable energy projects are more costly than conventional energy one, in the absence of a support scheme investors would not have been attracted to this sector, so Romania could not have met its commitments. Energy producers sell green certificates to energy suppliers, such as is the case of Electrica Furnizare, which is required to have a certain quota of renewable energy in the basket delivered to clients. But the acquisition of these certificates is an added cost for suppliers and will ultimately result in higher energy bills for the population and for companies, who will be the actual supporters of green energy in Romania.
While from 2009 until the present Romania has been the scene of a wind energy boom, from now on solar energy is expected to develop at a fast pace thanks to the very significant aid made available by the Romanian state. In fact, this year and the next will probably see most solar projects become operational because after 2014 the number of green certificates could be cut on account of suspicions of overcompensation. Transelectrica data shows that in the middle of October 122 solar projects had contracts to join the grid. They have an overall capacity of more than 521.4 megawatts, corresponding to more than one billion euros.
(English version by Daniela Stoican)