Alina Oprea • 27 September, 2023 at 8:32 AM
A very important project that Hidroelectrica is currently considering is an investment of around 1,500 MW in floating photovoltaic panels. Hidroelectrica, the largest producer of green energy in Romania, wants to realize this project together with the Emirati company Masdar, says the president of Hidroelectrica, Bogdan Badea. The representatives of Hidroelectrica and those of Masdar signed, on March 20, 2023, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, a joint venture agreement that engages the two companies in a joint investment approach aimed at the creation of offshore wind farms and floating solar parks in Romania.
"Hidroelectrica Company focuses on several targets. The first target is to maintain and increase the company's profitability and financial performance, which also comes with the plan to increase the installed capacity in terms of the production and diversification of energy sources, exclusively "green", because Hidroelectrica is a company "green". We want to keep this "green" company label. Our investment plans are headed towards, in addition to new hydro capacities that we can still achieve taking into account the environmental restrictions we have at the moment, and diversification towards other regional energy sources, especially wind and photovoltaic. We already have the Crucea wind farm in operation, which has been integrated into the portfolio. The operational results were beyond expectations, and the synergies benefiting from the various sources of renewable energy helped the company to diversify its production portfolio and increase profitability. Another very important project that we are considering at the moment is an investment of about 1,500 Megawatts in floating photovoltaic panels. It is an investment that we want to make together with the Emirati company Masdar. It is a new investment in Romania at such a size", said Badea, during a conference on the capital market.
Water luster, which at the moment presents extra potential in terms of surfaces, intensity, and yields that solar panels could offer, represents an opportunity for the company and is part of identifying those synergies that will contribute to the company's growth strategy, he says.
Masdar is one of the most important players globally, with projects carried out in 40 countries with 16 years of experience in the development and construction of renewable energy production capacities, and has a portfolio of 23 GW installed.
Since 2006, Masdar has invested primarily in solar and wind energy projects, with a combined value of more than $30 billion.
Hidroelectrica is the largest producer of green energy in Romania, with a market share of around 28%, achieved with an average annual production of 15.7 TWh delivered to the network. The company also owns a portfolio of 187 hydropower plants, with a hydropower capacity of 6.3 GW. Added to all this is the Crucea wind farm, with an installed power of 108 MW.