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Romanian-Bulgarian Energy Island concept, efficient solution for unlocking development of offshore wind energy
Offshore wind energy can become a catalyst for the decarbonization process in Romania and South-Eastern Europe, and a joint Romanian-Bulgarian Energy Island concept would be an effective solution for unlocking the development of this type of energy at the level of economies of scale, informs the Energy Policy Group (EPG) on Tuesday, at the launch event of the report Offshore wind - the enabler of Romania's decarbonisation.
The total capital costs (CAPEX) allocated by Romania in a joint project with Bulgaria, dubbed "Energy Island", including 3GW offshore wind farms, were estimated at 8.4 billion euros, of which 810 million euro Romania's share, while the resulting annual energy production was estimated at 9.8 TWh.
The development of 15GW of offshore wind energy capacity in the Black Sea, respectively in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ), is currently needed to become climate-neutral by 2050, shows the specialized report, presented by Mihai Balan, head of energy systems programs at EPG.
"This would become the largest source of electricity production in the country, with more than 40 percent of the total. The development of offshore wind farms takes between five and ten years, with an EU average of seven years, something that reveals that there are major opportunities for Romania to connect the first offshore wind energy capacities to the electricity transmission network before 2030. Thus, Romania's current status as net importer of electricity could change, providing additional clean energy needed for the decarbonization of sectors such as: industry, transport and heating and cooling," the document states.
In the view of EPG experts, the Romanian-Bulgarian Energy Island concept would be an effective solution for unlocking the development of offshore wind energy at the level of economies of scale, but also for expanding the interconnection capacity with other countries in the Black Sea basin, such as Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan. Such an initiative will contribute to energy security and price stability in the region, which will lead to increased offshore wind energy potential throughout the Black Sea basin, and the recently announced High-Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) submarine cable, which will be built by Romania, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Hungary, will represent an important pillar in this process.