Romania’s energy regulator is preparing new rules to filter out speculative investors and unblock delayed renewable energy projects, as authorities step up efforts to accelerate grid connections and restore credibility in the sector, the National Energy Regulatory Authority (ANRE) said.

ANRE announced it will publish for public consultation a draft regulation introducing mandatory financial guarantees for developers seeking grid access, in a move designed to prioritise serious investors over projects held for resale. The initiative comes amid mounting concern that a significant share of approved renewable projects exists only on paper, contributing to congestion in connection capacity.

“By the new requirements introduced by ANRE, we make sure that we have real investors and projects connected to the grid, not only projects on paper,” said ANRE President George Niculescu, as reported by Ziarul Financiar.

He added that authorities are also targeting “get-rich-quick schemes”, noting that some grid connection rights have recently been advertised for sale on online platforms such as OLX.

The proposed framework includes a guarantee of EUR 20 per installed kilowatt, required to participate in upcoming auctions for grid capacity allocation scheduled for the autumn. In addition, developers will need to provide a guarantee equivalent to 20% of the connection tariff after securing technical approval, creating a financial disincentive for delays or speculative exits.

The regulatory push is backed by the government. Prime minister Ilie Bolojan said authorities have already compiled a list of investors who obtained permits but failed to advance projects, suggesting they are waiting to sell them rather than build, Hotnews.ro reported. Further measures are planned to remove such actors from the pipeline.

The dual approach - tightening rules while publicly identifying stalled projects - reflects growing pressure to unlock renewable capacity at a time when Romania is counting on new generation to stabilise energy prices and meet EU climate targets.

By forcing developers to commit capital early, authorities aim to clear the backlog and ensure that scarce grid capacity is allocated to projects with a realistic chance of completion, rather than those driven by speculative gains.

iulian@romania-insider.com

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