Romania drives electrification while CET II Holboca tender is cancelled

At the Eurelectric Power Summit in Helsinki, Corneliu Bodea, president of the Romanian Center for Energy (CRE) and CEO of Adrem, called for a national push toward electrification. He highlighted Romania’s favorable position with natural‑gas reserves, significant hydro potential and strong conditions for wind and solar development. Bodea noted that about 80 GW of projects have received grid connection permits, with roughly 10 GW in advanced stages, primarily in renewables but also including gas‑fired plants to ensure system flexibility. He warned that the electricity network, built for around 80 TWh per year, is currently used at just over half capacity, driving up costs, and urged that increased consumption across industry, transport and buildings should become a strategic goal.

Separately, the Iași City Hall announced the cancellation of the tender to modernize the CET II Holboca cogeneration plant because the sole bid exceeded the estimated price by about 15 %. The project, valued at over 150 million lei, aims to replace coal‑based heat production with gas‑fired cogeneration that would supply both hot water and electricity to the local district‑heating system. Officials said the procedure may be restarted after August if additional funding is approved, emphasizing the urgent need for local cogeneration capacity.