Romania will gradually shut down its entire 4.59GW coal-fired power plants by the end of 2032 under a frontload schedule, according to the recovery and resilience plan (PNRR) sealed with the European Commission. Romania has become the 19th European country to formalise plans to exit coal, announced Europe Beyond Coal (EBC) - an alliance of civil society groups working to catalyse the closures of coal mines and power plants. "With only 810 MW of coal planned to remain in the system between 2026 and 2032, we're confident that Romania will very quickly discover the massive benefits a clean, renewable energy-based economy brings with it and will redouble its effort to exit coal this decade," the alliance's statement reads. EBC uses the opportunity to recommend countries like Poland, Czech Republic and Germany to follow the example and phase out hard coal and lignite power generation. Nevertheless, giving up the coal is far from being smooth and straightforward or a done deal in Romania. The sharp rise in electricity prices faced by Romania this year is partly due to scarce generation capacities (conventional or renewable), and the commitments put even more pressure on the deficit hence prices. Most of the capacity (3.78GW) will be closed by the end of 2023, according to the data included in the PNRR, quoted by Economica.net. Under the schedule, Romania pledged to shut down units with a total capacity of nearly 1.70GW this year. The capacity left in place after the end of 2025 (0.8GW) is the equivalent of three large groups of Oltenia Energy Complex (probably the entire Rovinari power plant), which, according to sources consulted by Economica.net, will be maintained as a strategic reserve at the disposal of the national energy dispatch. To substitute the coal-fired plants, Romania will invest in new gas-fired power plants with a capacity of 1.3GW by the end of 2025. The new renewable capacities will reach at least 3GW by mid-2026, out of which 2GW is to be completed by the end-2025, according to the PNRR. Currently, Romania has a total installed capacity of 3GW in wind farms and almost 1.4GW in solar power plants. Under a schedule sketched by 2030, the country plans to add 6.9 GW of new renewable energy capacity before 2030. More than 3.7 GW of that capacity is projected to be solar projects.
Associates of the fugitive Moldovan oligarch Ilan Șor were urged to vote for far-right candidate George Simion in the presidential elections in Romania back in May, according to the General Inspectorate of Police of the Republic of Moldova. Moldovan police made public several messages discovered on the phones of those close to Ilan Șor as […]
The month of July was nearly 2 degrees Celsius warmer than normal in Romania, with temperatures exceeding 43 degrees Celsius in the southern Oltenia region and over 40 degrees Celsius in Transylvania. Eleven new heat records were set, and there were also intense rains as well as severe hailstorms, according to the climatological summary published by […]
Romania ranks last in the European Union in terms of circular material usage, with a rate of just 1.3%, according to 2023 public data analyzed by Clean Recycle experts. Comparatively, countries such as the Netherlands (30.6%), Italy (over 20%), and Malta lead the EU rankings. A circular economy is a model of production and consumption […]
A new edition of Art Safari will take place from September 5 to December 14 in Bucharest, featuring a diverse program of art exhibitions. Highlights include "Paris Pallady," showcasing over 70 works by Romanian artist Theodor Pallady alongside pieces by Henri Matisse, in collaboration with Paris museums Musée de l'Orangerie and Musée Henri Matisse, the […]
According to a recent announcement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Romania endorsed the Joint Declaration on the Security and Resilience of Submarine Cables in a Global Digitalized World, in coordination with the United States and European Union partners. The diplomatic effort takes place as allies are concerned with sabotage incidents, cyberattacks, and other forms […]
The media and entertainment industry in Romania is projected to experience steady growth over the next five years, driven primarily by the expansion of digital segments. According to the latest PwC Global Telecommunications, Entertainment & Media Outlook 2025-2029 report, the sector is expected to grow at an average rate of around 2% annually, reaching a […]
