Electric power in Romania was provided by the Romanian Electric Power Corporation (CONEL). Energy used in electric power generation consisted primarily of nuclear, coal, oil, and liquefied natural gas (LNG). Of the 54,885 million kwhr of electricity generated in 2005, 22 percent came from nuclear plants then in operation, 54 percent from thermal plants (oil and coal), and 14 percent from hydroelectric sites. It was predicted in 2007 that the generation structure by the year 2010 would be 10.2 percent hydroelectric, 12.2 percent oil, 22.9 percent coal, 10.2 percent LNG, and 44.5 percent nuclear.
Romania has significant oil and gas reserves, substantial coal deposits and it has substantial hydroelectric power installed. However, Romania imports oil and gas from Russia and other countries. To ease this dependency Romania seeks to use nuclear power as an alternative to electricity generation. So far, the country's only nuclear reactor, located at Cernavodă, accounts for about 9-10% of the country's electricity production, while a second one is scheduled to go online in 2007 and two more to start construction the same year. Nuclear waste is stored on site at reprocessing facilities. Possessing substantial oil refining capacities, Romania is particularly interested in the Central Asia-Europe pipelines and seeks to strengthen its relations with some Persian Gulf states.
In the decade between 1989 and 1999, Romania saw decrease of its greenhouse gas emissions by 55%. This can be accounted for by a 45% decrease in energy use due to languishing economy, and a 15% decrease in its carbon intensity of energy use. In this period of time the carbon intensity of Romania's economy decreased by 40%, while Romania's GDP declined 15%. Romania's GDP has recovered significantly since then.
Hydrocarbons
Romania was one of the largest producers of oil in World War II. The petrochemical industry near Ploiesti was bombed heavily by American bombers. After the war, a heavy reconstruction and expansion was done under the communist regime. Since then, most of the industry was privatized.
Possessing substantial oil refining capacities, Romania is particularly interested in the Central Asia-Europe pipelines and seeks to strengthen its relations with some Persian Gulf states. With 10 refineries and an overall refining capacity of approximately 5,504,000 bbl/d (875,100 m³/d), Romania has the largest refining industry in the region. Romania's refining capacity far exceeds domestic demand for refined petroleum products, allowing the country to export a wide range of oil products and petrochemicals, -- such as lubricants, bitumen, and fertilizers -- throughout the region. [2]
Energy producers were dominated by government enterprises, although privately operated coal mines and oil refineries also existed. Accordingly, Romania placed an increasingly heavy emphasis on developing nuclear power generation.
This is an incomplete list of oil refineries in Romania:
Arpechim Piteşti Refinery, (Petrom/OMV), 70,000 bbl/d (11,000 m³/d)
Astra Refinery, (Interagro), 20,000 bbl/d (3,200 m³/d)
Petrobrazi Ploieşti Refinery, (Petrom/OMV), 90,000 bbl/d (14,000 m³/d)
Petromidia Constanţa Refinery, (Rompetrol), 100,000 bbl/d (16,000 m³/d)
Petrotel LUKoil Ploieşti Refinery, (LUKOIL), 68,000 bbl/d (10,800 m³/d)
Petrolsub Suplacu de Barcău Refinery, (Petrom/OMV), 15,000 bbl/d (2,400 m³/d)
RAFO Oneşti Refinery, (Calder A), 70,000 bbl/d (11,000 m³/d)
Steaua Romană Câmpina Refinery, (Omnimpex Chemicals), 15,000 bbl/d (2,400 m³/d)
Vega Ploieşti Refinery, (Rompetrol), 20,000 bbl/d (3,200 m³/d)
Hydroelectric power
This is a list of Reservoirs and dams in Romania:
Vidraru Dam
Bicaz (Izvorul Muntelui), on the Bistriţa river
Cerna
Drăgan, on the Valea Drăganului river
Fântânele, on the Someşul Cald river
Frumoasa
Goleşti
Gura Apelor
Gura Râului
Mâneciu
Motru
Oaşa
Paltinu
Pecineagu
Poiana Mărului
Poiana Uzului
Porţile de Fier, on the Danube
Portile de Fier I
Portile de Fier II
Râuşor
Săcele
Secu
Siriu
Someşul Cald, on the Someşul Cald
Stânca
Strâmtori
Tarniţa, on the Someşul Cald
Tău
Tileagd, on the Crişul Repede
Lugaşu, on the Crişul Repede
Vidra, on the Lotru
Vidraru, on the Argeş
Zetea
Wind power
As of 2007, Wind power in Romania has an installed capacity of 10 MW, up from the 3 MW installed capacity in 2006.
Romania has a high wind power potential of around 14.000 MW[1] and a power generating capacity of 23 TWh, but until 2007 there were no sigificant wind farms in operation.
Homever there is a significant number of companies interested in investing in wind farms in Romania, Enel having plans for several wind farms with a total capacity of 1.400 MW.
Another company interested in wind power in Romania is Cofra Group which has plans for two wind farms, one of 700 MW in Dobrogea and one of 400 MW in Moldova with total investments of US$ 1.65 billion.[2]
Iberdrola recently bought from a Swiss and a Romanian company 50 wind farm projects totalling 1.600 MW of power for US$ 450 million.[3]
There are several Romanian companies interested in building wind farms, but the most significant are Electrica and Green Energy which have plans for around 600 MW of wind farms with total investments of US$ 800 million. [4][5]
These are some of the most important wind farm projects in Romania:
Farm Power MW
Babadag 48
Călimani 27
Clisura Dunării 10
Mărişelu 300
New Energy Constanţa30
New Energy Tulcea 20
Valu lui Traian 10
Nuclear power
Romania placed a heavy emphasis on nuclear power generation. The country's first nuclear power plant, the Cernavoda Number One located near Cernavoda, opened in 1993. Two reactors were operational in 2007 when atomic power generation was an estimated 21,158 million kilowatts, or 23.1 percent of total electric power.
Reactors:
Unit 1
Unit One was finished in 1996 and produces 705.6 MW of electricity.
It was commisionned and began operating at full power in 1996 and has had record capacity factors of 90 per cent since 2005. Unit 1 recently completed over 300 days without an interruption in service.
The reactor is a CANDU 6 type.
Unit 2
Unit Two achieved criticality on 6 May 2007 [1] and was connected to the national grid on 7 August. It began operating at full capacity on 12 September 2007[2], also producing 706MW.
Unit 2 was officially commissioned on Friday, October 5, 2007 during ceremonies attended by Romanian Prime Minister Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu and senior officials from Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL). [3]. This makes CNE-Cernavoda Station the largest power producer in the country.
A consortium of AECL and Ansaldo Nuclear of Italy, along with the Nuclearelectrica (SNN) SA, Romania’s nuclear public utility, were contracted in 2003 to manage the construction of the partially completed Unit 2 power plant and to commission it into service.
The reactor is a CANDU 6 type.
Future expansion
Units 3 and 4
Units 3 and 4 are expected to be CANDU 6 reactors with a similar design to Unit 2 and will each have a capacity of 750 MW. When completed, the four units combined are expected to provide up to 40 % of Romania's total electricity needs, reducing its dependence on fossil fuels for electricity generation. Units 3 and 4 are expected to be operational by 2014 and 2015 respectively. The project is estimated to take up to six years after the contracts are signed.
In a feasibility study carried out by Deloitte and Touche, the most economically viable scenario would be to build the two phases at the same time, with the cost estimated at €2.3 billion.
On 7 March 2008, Nuclearelectrica, ArcelorMittal, CEZ, Electrabel, Enel, Iberdrola and RWE agreed to set up a company dedicated to the completion, commissioning and operation of Units 3 and 4. The company is expected to be registered in May 2008.[4]
Unit 5
There are currently no plans to complete Unit Five at this time. However, the possibility of finishing construction remains.
Options include the current CANDU 6 reactor, an enchanced CANDU 6 reactor producing 740 MW, or the Advanced CANDU Reactor.
To cover the increasing energy needs of its population and ensure the continued raising of its living standard, Romania plans several nuclear power plants. Nuclear power proposals were presented as early as in the 1990s, but plans were repeatedly canceled even after bids were made by interested manufacturers because of high costs and safety concerns. Romania has always chosen Candu nuclear reactors because they use natural unenriched uranium which is cheap and available locally and because they can be refueled online.
