GEK Terna Expands in Romania With €145M Energy Project

Greek infrastructure group GEK Terna is expanding its operations in Romania beyond railway  projects, entering a major  energy infrastructure  project for PPC Renewables with an initial value of €144.6 million.  RomanianTravel Guide   The project, known as EPC Nadab HV, involves the construction of the high-voltage infrastructure required to connect a large-scale photovoltaic project to Romania’s national power grid. The works will be carried out in western Romania, in the Chisineu-Cris–Nadab area of Arad County.   The contract was signed in August and will be delivered by GEK Terna under a turnkey EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) arrangement. The Greek group will be responsible for engineering and design, civil works, equipment procurement and transportation, installation and commissioning.   The project includes two 400/110 kV substations equipped with Gas Insulated Switchgear (GIS), two underground 400 kV power lines, as well as the expansion of the transmission system operator’s existing outdoor 400 kV substation.   Earlier this year, GEK Terna also expanded its renewable energy portfolio in Romania by acquiring a photovoltaic project with battery storage from Renovatio Group.   Located in Satu Mare County, the solar park has an installed capacity of 100 MW and storage capacity of 99 MW.The acquisition is part of GEK Terna’s broader strategy to expand its presence in Romania’s energy market.   The new energy infrastructure contract follows the Greek group’s growing presence in Romania’s railway infrastructure market.   At the end of July, Terna, GEK Terna’s construction arm, signed a contract worth approximately €380 million with Romania’s national railway infrastructure company CFR for Lot 2 of the Filiasi–Igiroasa railway section.    The works will be carried out by the TrackWorks consortium, in which Terna holds a 74% stake and Alstom Romania 26%. The project involves the complete design and reconstruction of approximately 44 kilometres of railway.   The Lot 2 contract followed another agreement signed at the end of March for Lot 1 of the Craiova–Filiasi section, valued at approximately €410 million. Terna holds a 69% stake in that consortium.   The two railway contracts have a combined value of around €790 million and cover approximately 83 kilometres of the Craiova–Drobeta Turnu Severin–Caransebes railway line. Following modernization, the railway will allow passenger trains to operate at speeds of up to 160 km/h and freight trains at up to 120 km/h. The infrastructure will also accommodate freight trains up to 740 metres long.   With the new energy infrastructure contract, GEK Terna is therefore expanding its Romanian portfolio into power transmission networks, alongside its existing railway projects.   GEK Terna is continuing to monitor opportunities in Romania’s infrastructure market.   George Peristeris, the group’s chairman and CEO, has said GEK Terna is assessing tenders promoted or planned by the Romanian authorities in the concessions sector, although the group has not yet announced a specific project in this segment.   Romania has consequently become one of the Greek group’s significant international markets, amid substantial public investment in infrastructure, energy and transport.   The expansion is part of GEK Terna’s broader international growth strategy, particularly in Southeastern Europe, as the group seeks new construction and infrastructure projects outside Greece.   GEK Terna is Greece’s largest infrastructure company, with operations spanning construction, energy, real estate and concessions.