The project is made up of 240 wind turbines, has a 600 MW capacity, almost equal the one of a Cernavoda reactor, and last year, its first operational year, generated 1.25 TWh of energy, covering 2.5% of Romania’s internal consumption.
“The group is focusing on the highest performing assets, and this clearly is not such an asset,” said Adrian Borotea, corporate business manager with CEZ Romania.
CEZ’s intention to give up a minority stake in its wind projects was published in a presentation to investors drawn up last month.
The wind projects are controlled through two companies, Tomis Team and Ovidiu Development. Both companies are 100% controlled by CEZ.
The Czech group’s decision comes as the support scheme for green energy in Romania has undergone several changes. While originally the Czech group was supposed to get two green certificates for each MWh delivered into the network, since mid-2013 wind power investors get just one certificate, with the other one to be recouped in the 2018-2020 period.
Moreover, the price of green certificates has declined, and now they are traded at EUR29, close to the legal minimum of EUR27. The compulsory quota for suppliers regarding the acquisition of green certificates was also frozen for 2014 at the level of last year, 11.1%.
Also, “the allocation of green certificates for Fantanele Vest project was suspended in November 2013 on the delayed notification to the European Commission,” the document presented to investors also reads.
“The problem should be solved within a month,” specified Borotea.
According to Transelectrica data, the two companies through which CEZ manages wind projects received 1.77 million green certificates in the account of renewable power production. According to ANRE (energy watchdog) data, the average price of a green certificate stood at EUR42 last year. Thus, CEZ cashed in EUR64.5 million from certificates.
In 2012, CEZ posted sales of EUR417 million in Romania, with the company distributing energy to 1.4 million consumers of Oltenia region.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)