According to electricity transmission system operator Transelectrica, Romanian interconnection capacity with neighboring networks has increased significantly this year, both in terms of export and import, and will double in five years.
According to a report by Transelectrica, since 1 January 2021, the capacity of interconnections with neighboring countries – Bulgaria, Hungary, Serbia and Ukraine, has been increased to 2,800 MW for exports from Romania and 3,000 MW for imports into Romania. This represents a significant increase from about 2,200 MW in both directions in 2000.
Increasing interconnection capacity allows for a larger volume of cross-border electricity trade. The Romanian day-ahead market has been coupled with the spot markets in Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and more recently with markets in Austria, Poland and Hungary. Coupling with the Bulgarian market is expected in the fall. In the coupled markets, transactions are performed without paying a fee for reserving cross -border capacity, which facilitates trade, and the coupling mechanism enables the flow of electricity from cheaper to more expensive markets.
In the last two years, Romania was a net importer of electricity, and one of the reasons is the lack of new production capacities. This year, in the first six months, the country was a net exporter, a position that may not be maintained throughout the year .
