In Romania, around 330 MW of onshore wind power was installed in 2025, but numerous bureaucracy and permitting issues remain, market sources told Energynomics.
“There are companies that have obtained construction permits (ATR) very close to our wind farm,” a source claims. “We contacted ANRE and they told us they didn’t realize the problem,” the quoted source added.
At the same time, there are numerous connection issues for investors. Issues that could be resolved if the authorities and the transmission and distribution operators (TSO, DSO) had a firmer dialogue.
“We are sent to dialogue with several entities that should first establish the network coordinates between them,” the quoted source added.
The Romanian wind industry is in a strong recovery phase after a long period of stagnation, supported by European funds (PNRR), the need for energy transition and an improved legislative framework.
Romania is expected to significantly exceed the 3 GW installed threshold, with a clear objective of reaching 5-6 GW by the end of the decade, as new projects announced in 2023-2024 enter the execution phase. New installations have been planned for 2025, with a focus on large-scale projects, especially in the Dobrogea area and in Moldova, but also in areas with development potential in the west of the country.
Numerous wind farms benefit from financing through the PNRR, which imposes strict completion deadlines, many of them being planned to be connected to the grid in 2025-2026.
A major trend in 2025 is “repowering” (the modernization of old parks with newer and more powerful turbines), which increases the installed capacity on the same sites.
Recent legislative changes have made it easier to obtain permits and have allowed the development of projects on non-agricultural land or on lower-quality agricultural land.
Major challenges include the fact that Transelectrica needs massive investments, as well as distribution operators, to be able to take on the new wind capacity, and the connection process remains in a potential bottleneck. There are also supply chain challenges. And the high demand for wind turbines at European level may cause delays in the delivery of components.
The pace of installation is expected to continue to increase, with 2026 expected to bring another 500 MW of new capacity into operation.
