With domestic electricity demand down 5% in 2013 for the second year in a row, the surplus was exported and traders took advantage from the higher prices in the neighboring countries.
Romania exported 4.7 TWh or 8.5% of its domestic consumption last year, while imports only reached 2.7 TWh or 4.8% of the total consumption, according to the electricity exchange data compiled by the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E). Romania’s representative to the network is Transelectrica (TEL.RO).
The country’s power exports were worth some EUR170 million, according to ZF calculations based on the average day-ahead auction prices on the Romanian market, while imports amounted to EUR94 million.
The main destinations for Romanian electricity were Bulgaria, Serbia and Hungary, which bought 4.6 TWh of power together. ENTSO-E data show the cross-border exchanges of electricity, which include both the electricity sold to customers abroad and the automatic balancing of the systems.
ENTSO-E data show a rise in exports in the last three months of the year. The reason, traders say, was the sudden drop in temperatures in the region and the fact that the Balkan countries hardly use natural gas for heating purposes, so demand and prices increased. Another reason for the rise in prices in the region was the temporary shutdown of power plants in Hungary and Slovenia for maintenance purposes
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)