Several hundred megawatts could be installed in Romania this year in power plants producing energy from renewable sources, but many of the projects are of poor quality, which prevents the development of good investments, said Radu Tărău, Executive Director of EnergoBit Control Solutions, at the 9th edition of the Energy Strategy Summit, an event organized by Energynomics.
“There are many projects, but their quality is very diverse and there are few developers who develop a project correctly. This is where the problems come in because bad projects will hinder good projects. On paper, we have some enormous capabilities. For example, only we have projects with technical approvals for the connection of 7 GW. We are assailed from all sides both on the planning side and on the execution side. We are involved in many wind and photovoltaic projects, and my estimate is that we will have several hundred megawatts commissioned this year because there are companies that have started investing without waiting for European funds. I think we need to have some quality criteria so that good projects can be executed because there is an appetite from investors”, said Tărău.
Many investors have started the construction of projects without waiting for co-financing from European funds, and in the next period, the number of projects will increase. One of the main challenges of these developments, however, is their integration into the national energy system, where significant investments are needed to be able to take over the energy to be produced by the new plants.
According to Tărău, it is very difficult for specialized companies to find specialists and train them, especially at a time when there is such high demand. At the same time, taking into account the emergence of new technologies, there is also a need for specialists with such skills, such as engineers in the hydrogen sector.
The rapid advance of renewable energies also opens up the need to create energy storage systems, a field in which Li-Ion batteries can be one of the solutions. An alternative, however, would be represented by pumping storage plants that could ensure a balancing of the national energy system “faster than the multitude of storage projects”.
Another impediment to the development of new solutions adapted to this wave of investments in renewable energies is the lack of investment in research.
“We have almost no investments in research and development. Or, in order to have a sustainable strategy, we also need to invest in this and keep up with these technologies. I don’t think it’s enough to just be followers and do what others are doing”, Tărău said.
Energy Strategy Summit 2023 was organised by Energynomics with the support of ABB, ASTRASUN Solar, BCR, CEZ Romania, Eaton Electric, Electrica Furnizare, Electro Service RB, Elektra Renewable Support, EnergoBit, Enevo Group, E.ON, Finder, Huawei, MET România Energy, OMV Petrom, OX2 România, Phoenix Contact, Photomate, ProCredit Bank, REI Grup, Renomia Gallagher, Romgaz, Schneider Electric, Signify, Transelectrica, Taw Energy, Volt, WIKA, Wiren, Alexandrion Group, Aqua Carpatica, Klarmedia and Mobexpert.