On 31 July, the Romanian Ministry of Energy will sign contracts worth 1 billion euros for investment in the energy distribution and transport grids, and by the end of August, a new energy strategy will be in place, said Romanian Minister of Energy Sebastian Burduja.

Over the past year, Romania has managed to secure investments of 13.6 billion euros in the nuclear program, green energy, geothermal energy, gas turbines, and grids, while for the distribution and transport of energy, Romania has brought in 1.5 billion euros.

He stated that when he took over the mandate, there were two main challenges, one strategic and one operational. On a strategic level, there was no coherent plan for the energy sector, but right now, Romania’s next energy strategy for 2025-2035, extending up to 2050, is in its final draft form.

„I hope it will be approved by the end of August, after 15 years [since the draft was prepared, e.n.],” Burduja added.

Another objective is the implementation of the Offshore Wind Law, which may enable Romania to be the first country in the region to have windmills in the Black Sea by 2031-2032. In creating this law, Romania received help from the USA, and by mid-2025, the Ministry of Energy will have to perform a study of the coast where the windmills will be located. Romania is working on this study with the US State Department and the World Bank.

Minister Burduja was part of a top-level conversation organized by Energynomics and the Romanian Energy Center, with the participation of the Romanian Ministry of Energy and the Atlantic Council’s Global Energy Center, and with the support of Elecrica SA, as a satellite event to the fifth meeting of the Partnership for Transatlantic Energy and Climate Cooperation (P-TECC) in Bucharest on July 23-24, 2024.