Romania has launched its ‘most ambitious’ call for renewable energy with nearly 3.5 GW offered under the 2nd round of contracts for difference (CfD), comprising onshore wind and solar PV projects.
The country’s Minister of Energy, Sebastian Burduja, said that out of the 3.472 GW offered in this auction, 2 GW has been allocated to onshore wind, and the remaining 1.472 GW for solar PV projects.
In its maiden CfD round, which concluded in December 2024, Romania awarded over 1.5 GW of wind and solar capacity. Financing contracts for 1 GW of wind and 500 MW of PV selected in the 1st auction have been signed, stated the ministry. Winning bids were determined at 20% to 30% lower prices than the ceiling tariffs (see Romania Selects Over 1.5 GW RE Capacity Under Maiden CfD Auction).
Following this, in the 2nd round, the maximum bid price for onshore wind has been capped at €80 ($89.6)/MWh, while it is €73 ($81.8)/MWh for solar, compared to €82/MWh and €78/MWh, respectively, in the previous round.
A key change from the previous round is that the ministry has done away with the 25% cap on the maximum capacity awarded, as it aims to improve cost efficiency. This will enable the bidders to scale up their projects and encourage more ‘competitive strike prices’. In the latest auction round, a single applicant will be able to submit multiple bids with no restrictions on the capacity to be applied for in MW.
However, the rules set a 120% ‘marginal bid cap’ to mitigate the risk of losing a marginal bid with large capacity.
“Through this new, unprecedented call, we are opening the gates wide for the largest investments in green energy in recent decades,” explained Burduja. “We are eliminating the 25% cap per project, offering freedom of application without capacity limits, and the rules are clarified so as to reduce risks for investors and increase competition. It is a call that can fundamentally change the structure of the national energy mix.”
The ministry launched the 2nd CfD auction on May 12, 2025, with the submission deadline for funding applications set at July 11, 2025.
