Whereas at the beginning of the wind energy boom the market was dominated by sizeable projects, lately smaller-sized wind farms have been finalized, shows data for the first five months of the year of market regulator Transelectrica.
According to ZF calculations based on data published by Transelectrica for the first five months of the year, green energy producers received 5.2 million green certificates worth EUR250 million for electricity injected into the system. Over 75% of the amount went to wind energy producers.
Leader of the ranking, with a total of 600 MW after investments of EUR1.1 million, remains Czech group CEZ, which last year installed the last turbine of the overall 240 that make up the Fantenele-Cogealac farm in Constanta county.
After the latest legislation change whereby a number of green certificates will be put off until 2017, depending on the technology used, and recouped subsequently, the Czech company has announced that as of this year it will have a concrete answer from Prague on the future development on the Romanian market.
The third-largest wind farm in Romania was also made operational in Constanta, being developed by businessman Emanuel Muntmark, the leading developer of wind farms in Romania. Muntmark developed several wind farms that were later taken over by groups such as CEZ, Petrom and ButanGas. According to Transelectrica data, the Ewind project, located in Constanta commune of Pantelimon, had a capacity of 123 MW on July 1 2013, with the farm set to have 150 MW when completed. Part of the financing needed came from Austrian Erste, which lent Muntmark EUR68 million.
Another Romanian entrepreneur, Constanta-based businessman Ion Grecu, also ranks among the top investors in wind projects through Elcomex EOL company. But now the projects developed by Grecu are in the portfolio of Enel, which, with a total of 498 MW installed in Romania, is the second largest investor in wind power after CEZ.
Energias de Portugal owns the fifth largest functional wind project in Romania, with a capacity of 90 MW, located in Constanta commune Pestera. Spanish Iberdrola also has a sizeable, 80-MW wind farm in Mihai Viteazu commune, Constanta.
Wind project no. 10 in the ranking of the largest functional wind energy projects in Romania is an investment of businessman Sebastian Ghita, a deputy from ruling coalition party PSD (Social Democratic Party), best-known as founder of IT&C group Asesoft. Ghita, alongside other partners, has made an over EUR100 million investment in a wind farm project in Galati through Corni Eolian company.
Major wind energy investors also include Verbund (Austria), Petrom, Martifer (Portugal) and ButanGas.
(English version by Daniela Stoican)