Romania aims to roll out 5 GW of energy storage by end 2026

According to Romanian Minister of Energy Sebastian Burduja, the country’s energy storage fleet is expected to grow exponetially over the next couple of years.

“In total, at the end of next year we should have storage capacities of at least 2,500 MW, and by 2026 we should exceed 5,000 MW. These targets are ambitious, but they are aligned with Transelectrica’s recommendations and analyses, which show a need for storage of at least 4,000 MW,” the minister wrote on Facebook.

“Last but not least, we resumed the Tarniţa-Lăpusteşti pumped storage hydropower plant project and we constantly support this type of investment, which will ensure essential services for the national energy system,” he added.

Burduja has also called for investments in energy storage, the lack of which he sees as one of the reasons behind high energy prices in Romania today, noting that the Ministry of Energy is making funding available for this purpose.

Romania has allocated EUR 80 million ($87 million) under its national recovery and resilience plan (PNRR) for energy storage projects, which is expected to result in contracts for a total of 1.8 GW of capacity. “The projects are under evaluation and we anticipate the signing of the contracts in September,” the minister said.

Another EUR 300 has been allocated from the Modernization Fund – EUR 150 million each for this year and next year – and this is expected to deliver at least 3 GW of storage.

Earlier this year, the Ministry launched two financing programs worth EUR 815 million, which are expected to deliver at least another 500 MW of energy storage projects.

Finally, under a new law, the Romanian parliament has mandated prosumers with PV systems with capacities from 10.8 kW to 400 kW to install energy storage systems, as revelead a couple of weeks ago.