Romania’s industrial sector is on the brink of a strategic shift. Faced with unprecedented energy price volatility, tightening EU regulations, and rising investor scrutiny on ESG commitments, more and more manufacturers are realizing that securing renewable energy is no longer a branding exercise or an optional add-on. It’s becoming a core part of business strategy — and corporate Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) are emerging as the preferred vehicle for making this shift concrete, predictable, and financially viable.

Why corporate PPAs make business sense

At their heart, corporate PPAs are long-term contracts that fix the price of renewable electricity between a producer and an industrial consumer. They’re designed to remove the uncertainty of the wholesale market, delivering budget stability over 10-15 years. But as the experts at PwC and Rezolv Energy make clear, their value goes much deeper. PPAs help companies protect themselves against price spikes like those seen in the gas crisis of 2022, they satisfy mandatory sustainability reporting under frameworks like the EU’s CSRD, and they support access to increasingly ESG-driven financing.

Dawid Gorol, Senior Manager at PwC Poland, summarized the business case crisply in a recent industry discussion: “Green electricity is no longer optional – it’s a financial and regulatory necessity.” He pointed to three drivers pushing companies in Central and Eastern Europe, including Romania, to adopt PPAs: cost savings over time, protection against energy market volatility, and compliance with ESG frameworks that are no longer simply aspirational but are being enforced by investors, banks, and supply-chain partners.

Learning from the recent energy crisis

A historical view of the Romanian market underscores these points. Wholesale electricity prices, which fluctuated between 60 and 170 euros per MWh in the past two years, exposed many manufacturers to painful cost swings. By contrast, companies locking in long-term PPAs could rely on stable, typically lower prices, avoiding the worst of the crisis. This hedging function isn’t theoretical — it delivered real savings at a moment when energy was threatening the viability of entire industries.

At the same time, regulatory pressures are ramping up. EU initiatives such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), the Taxonomy for Sustainable Activities, and frameworks like RE100 or Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) are forcing companies to prove they’re using renewable electricity — and not just via paper certificates. Financial institutions are aligning with these rules, making ESG compliance a condition for investment and lending.

Choosing the right tools for decarbonisation

But how do companies actually implement this shift? There’s no single recipe, but three tools stand out: Guarantees of Origin (GOs), on-site renewable generation, and corporate PPAs. Of these, GOs are the easiest to buy but offer limited real impact. They do little to reduce actual energy costs and don’t shield buyers from market volatility. On-site generation, such as installing solar panels on factory rooftops, offers maximum cost control but requires upfront capital and is limited by site constraints.

Corporate PPAs, by contrast, strike a balance: they deliver renewable energy at predictable prices, typically below market rates, while offering the volume and contractual certainty that industrial buyers need. And in Romania, this model is already proving itself in real-world deals.

From theory to practice: case studies in Romania

Rezolv Energy, one of the most active developers in the region, has structured large-scale PPAs tailored to the needs of heavy industry. A flagship example is their contract with Bekaert, a global leader in wire transformation and coating, which operates major manufacturing sites in Olt and Prahova. Under their 10-year virtual PPA, starting in 2026, Bekaert will secure 100 GWh of renewable wind electricity annually from Rezolv’s 461 MW wind project in Buzău County.

Milan Kamaryt, PPA Origination Lead at Rezolv Energy, explained why this structure worked so well. For Bekaert, on-site solar wasn’t an option — factory rooftops were unsuitable, and land was scarce. Instead, a long-term wind PPA provided year-round, night-and-winter-heavy generation, balancing the company’s load profile and mitigating the well-known “cannibalization effect” of solar energy during midday peaks when prices can collapse.

Kamaryt also highlighted a critical design insight for companies exploring PPAs: “Many buyers initially think they should cover 100% of their demand under a PPA. But that can backfire.” Contracting around 80% of forecast consumption offers a safer hedge, avoiding the need to resell excess electricity on the spot market at unpredictable prices. This hybrid approach — PPA for most of the load, spot market or GOs for the rest — delivers cost stability while retaining flexibility.

Another layer of sophistication comes from combining technologies. Wind and solar are complementary: solar peaks in summer and daytime, while wind is often stronger in winter and at night. Rezolv Energy’s experience across Central and Eastern Europe suggests that hybrid PPAs bundling both can offer even more stable, predictable supply, perfectly suited for the varied consumption patterns of industrial sites.

Of course, structuring a PPA is not trivial. Marc Fèvre, legal counsel for Rezolv Energy, emphasized that these are highly customized, long-term contracts that typically take 6–12 months to negotiate. Buyers and sellers must carefully allocate risks — from construction delays and grid constraints to market price volatility and regulatory changes. Contractual terms like price collars, force majeure clauses, and volume flexibility need to be clearly defined. Financial guarantees are another consideration, with developers requiring assurances of payment and buyers assessing how these obligations appear on their balance sheets.

Yet despite these complexities, the momentum behind corporate PPAs is only growing. Industrial companies in Romania increasingly see them as essential infrastructure — much like their physical production assets. The benefits are clear: protection against price spikes, alignment with ESG requirements, improved access to green financing, and a concrete, verifiable contribution to Romania’s energy transition.

For Romanian industry, the choice is becoming stark. Companies that move early to secure long-term renewable electricity will lock in lower costs and regulatory certainty, while those that wait risk being priced out of competitiveness or losing access to ESG-driven capital. The rise of corporate PPAs marks a decisive shift from opportunistic green marketing to serious, strategic energy independence.

In the words of Rezolv Energy’s team: PPAs are not just contracts — they’re partnerships that help companies build a sustainable, resilient future in an uncertain energy world. For Romanian manufacturers ready to compete on cost, sustainability, and credibility, that future is already taking shape.