Engie Romania expands its renewable energy production portfolio with its first hybrid plant

Engie Romania is expanding its renewable energy production portfolio with its first hybrid power plant, from wind and solar sources, with a total installed capacity of 57 MW, the company announced on Wednesday."Located in Gemenele commune in Braila county, the hybrid power plant will generate approximately 140 GWh annually, equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of over 46,800 households", the press release states.According to the cited source, this project increases the total installed wind and solar energy production capacity of the Engie Group in Romania to 211 MW, consolidating its position in the green electricity production sector."The hybrid power plant became operational with the completion of the construction of the photovoltaic park, a greenfield project developed by the company's teams in the last year. Located on a 14-hectare plot of land, next to the already operational wind farm owned by Engie in Gemenele commune, the photovoltaic park has an installed capacity of 9.3 MWp and consists of 17,100 bi-facial photovoltaic panels, which ensure a better energy yield and a more efficient use of the surface, being mounted on a metal tracker structure that follows the position of the sun to maximize performance the installation", the quoted source informs.The photovoltaic park, together with the existing wind farm, with a capacity of 47.5 MW, are connected to the same network and thus become one of the first hybrid plants from renewable sources in Romania. Each kWh produced by the photovoltaic plant contributes to the reduction of CO2 emissions, resulting in an estimated annual saving of approximately 49 kilotons."We are pleased to inaugurate the first hybrid power plant in the company's portfolio. It is an investment that will allow us to offer our customers electricity from renewable sources, considering that, for legal entities, we can propose long-term purchase contracts medium and long, thus supporting them to achieve their goals of reducing carbon emissions and predictability of energy costs", said Cristian Buzan, deputy general director of Engie Romania, quoted in the press release.The Engie Romania Group owns and operates three wind farms with a total capacity of 178 MW, in Braila, Constanta and Galati counties, as well as 5 photovoltaic parks, with a total installed capacity of 33 MW, in the counties of Arad, Buzau, Harghita and Teleorman. In 2023, the company made the investment decision to build a greenfield solar power plant in Aricestii Rahtivani commune, Prahova county, with a total capacity of 37.2 MWp.The Engie Romania group of companies operates in the following fields of activity: distribution and supply of natural gas, production from renewable sources and supply of electricity, as well as green solutions and technical services for natural gas installations and thermal power plants. Engie Romania and its subsidiaries serve a portfolio of over 2.2 million customers, operate a distribution network of 23,255 km, have a production capacity from green sources of 211 MW and have over 4,300 employees. The Engie Romania Group made investments worth 6,760 million lei from 2005 until December 31, 2023.