In 2025, the Romanian energy system can be described with a triple label: a return to the free market, accelerated investment and the strategic repositioning of natural gas in the energy mix. In a climate of investment effervescence and geopolitical overhauls, regulators, energy companies and system operators are maintaining their priorities. However, small shifts in emphasis were visible in the speeches of participants at the conference “Economic Trends 2025”, held on 31 March in Bucharest, organised by the Association for the Development of Romanian Entrepreneurship – ADAA. The session dedicated to energy was moderated by Gabriel Avăcăriței, editor-in-chief of Energynomics.
End of price capping, beginning of a new relationship with consumers
On 1 July 2025, Romania will officially exit the regulated electricity market. “We will no longer have a support scheme capping the price of electricity, and on 31 March 2026 we will no longer have a regulated price for natural gas,” recalled George Niculescu, president of ANRE. He emphasised that the authority has taken on a new role – that of a benchmark of trust for the consumer: “We want a transition towards a liberalised market […] in conditions that are as fair as possible for the consumer, so that he does not feel shocks in his bill.” Alexandru Chiriță, general manager of Electrica SA, confirmed that suppliers had prepared their messages to customers in advance: “It is very important for us to send the right messages to consumers, so that they know exactly what they can expect and what options they have.” According to Adrian Vintilă, adviser to the energy minister, market liberalisation should not create significant imbalances: “It is a new normal. I don’t think there will be an explosion in prices, but a gradual stabilisation.”
Expanding renewables and storage as a balancing solution
Romania continues to invest heavily in renewables. “In 2025, the trend of commissioning new renewable generation capacity will continue,” predicted George Niculescu, adding that the demand for authorisations and licences remained high. Adrian Vintilă completed the picture: “we expect the installed capacity in dispatchable PV to exceed 2,500 MW this time next year, and that in the prosumer segment to reach 3,500 MW – a huge capacity that needs to be accompanied by investments in storage and grid.”
Virgiliu Ivan, the director of Transelectrica’s National Energy Dispatching Centre, warned of the risks related to the variability of renewables: ‘We have differences of more than 2,500 MW between daytime consumption and the evening peak. It is absolutely necessary to develop storage facilities and attract investment in the consumption area.”
Alexandru Chiriță, emphasised the company’s growing interest in emerging market segments such as energy aggregation and storage. He noted that Electrica is already implementing a 30 MW battery power project with a total installed capacity of 60 MWh, which is expected to be finalised in 2025. In parallel, the company will deliver two solar projects.”I am convinced that, with the support of my colleagues, we will manage to close the two parks – one of 55 MW and the other of 77 MW – this year,” Chiriță said.
As well as renewables, investments are also targeting other critical segments of the power system, such as band capacity and balancing infrastructure – Hidroelectrica alone has signed 2024 refurbishment contracts worth around 300 million euros, and its maintenance budget for 2025 exceeds 100 million euros. Radu Constantin, a member of Hidroelectrica’s Board of Directors, said that “there are three power plants particularly important for the national energy system – Râul Mare Retezat, Mărișelu and Brădișor – that will enter into revamping procedures, with investments of up to €180 million.” In parallel, the company has accelerated plans for 500 MW in renewables and storage projects.
Natural gas back in the spotlight
Natural gas is regaining ground as a solution for energy balance and security. Romgaz CEO Răzvan Popescu announced annual investments of 1 bn euros in 2025 and 2026, with a strategic focus on the Neptun Deep project: ‘We have started drilling for the first well on the Pelican Sud deposit. The project is on schedule.”
Gabriel Andronache, vice-president of ANRE, emphasised that Romania will benefit, from 2027, from an additional 2,100 MW of band capacity, once the Mintia and Iernut projects are completed: “We will have a capacity that will give us some peace of mind… Mintia will produce 1,700 MW at full capacity and Iernut will add more than 400 MW.” “Mintia and Iernut together will consume about 3 billion cubic metres of gas per year – a third of Romania’s current consumption,” said Andronache, explaining why it is vital for Romania to keep domestically produced gas for its own use.
For his part, Adrian Vintilă said that, in the current geopolitical and industrial context, gas remains “an essential resource for the stability of the European energy system, not just the national one”, insisting that the energy transition must be “intelligent, not hasty”.
Responding to a question about the future of domestic resources exploration, Adriana Petcu, president of the National Authority for the Regulation of Mining, Petroleum and Geological Storage of Carbon Dioxide (ANRMPSG), confirmed that the institution is considering launching a new round of natural gas concessions. “At the regulator level, we are preparing a new round for exploration,” she said.
One of the recurring themes of the conference was the urgent need for the accelerated electrification of industry and society as the foundation for a successful energy transition. Industry leaders repeatedly emphasised that the development of generation capacity, however ambitious, risks becoming inefficient in the absence of solid and predictable demand from the real economy. “Without consumers, all these investments of billions of euros will be very difficult to sustain,” warned Virgiliu Ivan, director of the National Energy Dispatching Centre, recalling that the energy system cannot function sustainably without an active, connected and competitive industrial base.
The conference “Economic Trends 2025” brought together top decision-makers from public institutions and strategic companies in the energy sector, including George Niculescu, president of ANRE, Gabriel Andronache, vice-president of ANRE, Adriana Petcu, president of ANRMPSG, Adrian Vintilă, advisor to the Minister of Energy, Răzvan Popescu, general director of Romgaz, Alexandru Chiriță, CEO of Electrica SA, Radu Constantin, member of the Board of Directors of Hidroelectrica SA, and Virgiliu Ivan, director of the National Energy Dispatching Centre of Transelectrica.
