Hydroelectric power plants are not sufficiently supported in Europe, we are facing difficulties in continuing older investments, and procedures are becoming increasingly bureaucratic, Hidroelectrica CEO Bogdan Badea said on Tuesday. at the Economist Romania Government Roundtable, an event organized in partnership with RCI Holding România

“We are the largest electricity producer in Romania. We have 6.3 gigawatts in hydroelectric power plants and 108 megawatts in wind power. So, theoretically, we are perfectly aligned with the objectives set by the Green Deal at the European Union level. In reality, however, I think that what was omitted or treated as a ‘Cinderella’ of renewable technologies was hydropower. Hydropower plants remained somewhere in the middle: we operate green, sustainable technologies, we create added value where we have lakes, including artificial ones, and we create infrastructure and tourist attractions. (…) At the same time, from another perspective, hydroelectric power plants are not sufficiently supported in Europe – and we have felt this in the last 10 years. We are facing difficulties in continuing older investments, and procedures are becoming increasingly bureaucratic. The big question is: ‘Where are we? Is hydropower still a supported technology at the European Union level, is it not supported? Is it encouraged or right?”, said Badea, quoted by Agerpres.

He stressed that if we take an “x-ray” of the energy sector in Romania, we can see a difference in pace: we were very quick in decommissioning important basic capacities, but we did not put in place other, more environmentally friendly technologies quickly enough.

“Thus, an imbalance was created, a deficit. Romania went from being a net exporter – including for the energy security of the region – to a situation that puts additional pressure on the system. We have many solar installations, which is a good thing. I always support the idea that there should not be a competition between technologies. We need to learn how to combine them and what is the right mix for the energy transition. In this mix, hydro should be the most important player, because it is the main provider for security of supply and for balancing services. And we use a renewable resource: water”, explained the CEO of Hidroelectrica.

According to him, last year was one of extreme drought, and hydro production fell to 11.8 TWh, compared to an average of almost 15 TWh, or even 18 TWh in 2023.

Bogdan Badea also drew attention to the fact that, if old technologies are replaced with new ones, the pressure on the system will increase, so more storage capacity will be needed.

“Honestly, I don’t think a hydroelectric power plant is less environmentally friendly than a battery. Yes, batteries are useful – and we use them to optimize production – but in the long term I think hydropower is the sustainable technology. And I think this is one of the problems with the way the Green Deal was built. However, it is not too late to try to encourage investments in hydro and reduce bureaucracy. For example, in Romania we need about five years to obtain environmental authorization, according to European legislation, adapted to national legislation, even to replace old equipment with new one. And we built the Vidraru power plant entirely in almost the same period, six years,” the Hidroelectrica director also stated.