Romania's 91.1 GW Renewable Energy Pipeline: What ANRE's June 2026 Data Really Means

Quick answer

As of 1 June 2026, ANRE reported:

Development stage Projects Approved export capacity Valid technical connection approvals—ATRs 1,530 91,118 MW Signed grid connection agreements 998 55,126 MW Connection agreements and building permits 671 31,354 MW Connection agreements, building permits and ANRE establishment authorisations 223 10,762 MW

The central market message is clear:

Only 11.8% of the capacity covered by valid ATRs had reached the most advanced regulatory category reported in the ANRE note.

1. The 91.1 GW headline is a development funnel, not a delivery forecast

Romania’s renewable energy market is often assessed by referring to the total capacity covered by valid technical connection approvals.

That number is useful because it measures developer interest and the volume of projects seeking access to the network. It is not, however, an accurate measure of future installed generation.

The ANRE data illustrates the progressive reduction in capacity as projects move through the main development stages.

From ATR to grid connection agreement

Out of the 1,530 projects with valid ATRs:

• 998 had signed connection agreements
• these represented 55,126 MW.

This means approximately:

• 65.2% of the projects with valid ATRs had progressed to a signed connection agreement
• 60.5% of the approved export capacity had reached that stage.

A connection agreement is an important step because it turns the technical solution contained in the ATR into a contractual relationship between the developer and the relevant network operator.

It does not, by itself, establish that the project has secured all land, permits, financing, equipment or construction arrangements required for delivery.

From connection agreement to building permit

Of the 998 projects with signed connection agreements:

• 671 had also obtained building permits
• these represented 31,354 MW.

Therefore, only approximately:

• 43.9% of all projects holding valid ATRs
• 34.4% of the corresponding ATR capacity

had reached the building-permit stage.

Measured against projects with connection agreements, approximately 56.9% of the associated capacity had also obtained a building permit.

From building permit to ANRE establishment authorisation

Only 223 projects, representing 10,762 MW, had:

• signed connection agreements
• building permits
• ANRE establishment authorisations.

This category represents approximately:

• 14.6% of all projects with valid ATRs
• 11.8% of all capacity covered by valid ATRs
• approximately 34.3% of the capacity that had already reached the building-permit stage.

The sharp reduction does not necessarily mean that the remaining projects are unviable. Some may be progressing normally through permitting, financing or technical development.

It does show, however, why the headline 91.1 GW figure should not be treated as a near-term commissioning forecast.

2. Romania’s pipeline continued to expand rapidly in May 2026

The ANRE report also compares the market position on 1 June 2026 with the position one month earlier.

The number of projects with valid ATRs increased only moderately, from 1,517 to 1,530—an increase of 0.86%.

The associated capacity increased much faster:

• from 87,220 MW
• to 91,118 MW
• an increase of 4.47%, or 3,898 MW.

This suggests that the projects added to, or updated within, the pipeline during the month were, on average, relatively large.

The more advanced categories also grew:

Indicator 1 May 2026 1 June 2026 Monthly evolution Projects with signed connection agreements 960 998 +3.96% Capacity under connection agreements 50,991 MW 55,126 MW +8.11% Projects with connection agreements and building permits 645 671 +4.03% Related capacity 29,125 MW 31,354 MW +7.65% Projects also holding ANRE establishment authorisations 208 223 +7.21% Related capacity 10,205 MW 10,762 MW +5.47%

The monthly data is commercially significant for two reasons.

First, Romania is not merely accumulating speculative early-stage projects. Capacity is also moving into later development stages.

Second, the rapid increase in capacity under signed connection agreements creates greater pressure on network operators to deliver connection and reinforcement works within contractual timelines.

3. The commissioning schedule is highly concentrated in 2026 and 2027

ANRE reports the estimated commissioning calendar for projects with:

• signed connection agreements
• building permits transmitted to the network operator.

For the period 2026–2035, this category includes:

• 647 projects
• 30,366 MW.

The annual distribution is as follows:

Expected commissioning year Projects Approved export capacity 2026 267 9,649 MW 2027 196 9,899 MW 2028 74 4,321 MW 2029 39 2,362 MW 2030 14 2,191 MW 2031 13 862 MW 2032 4 223 MW 2033 11 211 MW 2034 15 264 MW 2035 14 384 MW

Approximately 64.4% of the 30,366 MW pipeline is scheduled for commissioning in 2026 and 2027. Approximately 78.6% is scheduled by the end of 2028.

The report separately identifies a narrower category of projects that also hold ANRE establishment authorisations.

For the 2026–2035 period, that category includes:

• 213 projects
• 10,079 MW.

Of this more advanced pipeline:

Approximately 67.5% of this 10,079 MW category is scheduled for 2026–2027.

How reliable are the commissioning dates?

The dates are based on information reported by network operators and on the schedules contained in documents concluded during the connection process.

They should not be interpreted as unconditional completion commitments.

Actual commissioning remains dependent on matters such as:

The very high concentration of capacity in 2026 and 2027 means that some schedule slippage, reprioritisation or project attrition should be expected as the pipeline moves from documents to physical execution.

That is a commercial inference from the scale and concentration of the reported pipeline; the ANRE note does not itself assess the probability of timely completion.

4. Energy storage has become a material component of the Romanian pipeline

One of the most valuable elements in the ANRE report is the information on storage.

Among the 671 projects holding signed connection agreements and building permits:

• 143 projects
• representing 9,147 MW of approved export capacity

were reported as either:

power plants incorporating energy storage systems; or standalone storage facilities.

Storage-related projects therefore represent approximately:

• 21.3% of the project count in this development category
• 29.2% of its approved export capacity.

Of these, 36 projects representing 2,050 MW were reported as scheduled for commissioning during 2026.

What the storage data does—and does not—tell us

The 9,147 MW figure refers to approved maximum export capacity.

The ANRE report does not disclose:

This limitation is important.

MW indicates the maximum rate at which a storage project may export power. It does not show how long the project can sustain that export.

A 100 MW/100 MWh system and a 100 MW/400 MWh system would both appear as 100 MW of export capacity, although their investment cost, operating strategy and market contribution would be materially different.

Business significance

Even with those limitations, the figures confirm that storage has moved into the core of Romanian renewable development.

The growth of storage can support:

The number of hybrid and standalone storage projects also suggests that legal and technical due diligence must increasingly analyse generation and storage as an integrated system rather than as separate assets.

5. Transelectrica carries most of the capacity, although not most of the projects

The 647 projects with connection agreements, building permits and commissioning dates between 2026 and 2035 are distributed across the transmission and distribution operators as follows:

Network operator Projects Approved export capacity Transelectrica 123 20,401 MW Distribuție Energie Electrică România—DEER 205 3,776 MW Distribuție Energie Oltenia—DEO 99 1,838 MW Delgaz Grid 30 740 MW Rețele Electrice România—RER 190 3,611 MW Total 647 30,366 MW

Transelectrica accounts for only approximately 19% of the projects, but approximately 67.2% of the capacity.

This reflects the much larger average size of projects connecting directly to the transmission network.

The same concentration appears in the more advanced category of projects also holding ANRE establishment authorisations:

Network operator Projects Approved export capacity Transelectrica 45 6,815 MW DEER 72 1,335 MW DEO 44 831 MW Delgaz Grid 7 123 MW RER 45 975 MW Total 213 10,079 MW

Transelectrica therefore represents approximately 67.6% of the capacity in this narrower category as well.

Why this concentration matters

The data reinforces the strategic importance of the Romanian transmission network.

The ability of large projects to reach commercial operation will depend not only on the maturity of the generation assets, but also on:

For investors, a project’s connection status cannot be evaluated solely by checking whether an ATR and connection agreement exist.

The underlying technical solution, reinforcement dependencies, contractual milestones and responsibility for delays must be reviewed in detail.

6. The legal meaning of the four development stages

The ANRE report organises the pipeline around four principal milestones.

These milestones are not interchangeable.

Valid technical connection approval—ATR

The ATR establishes the approved technical solution for connecting the project to the relevant electricity network.

It typically identifies matters such as:

An ATR is a critical project asset, but it is not an operating licence and does not prove that the project is construction-ready.

Its value depends on:

The connection agreement contractually regulates the implementation of the approved connection solution.

Its review should cover:

A signed agreement is a major maturity step, but it does not eliminate construction or network-delivery risk.

Building permit

The building permit demonstrates that the project has progressed through a substantial part of the land, urban-planning, technical and permitting process.

Its commercial value depends on:

A project may hold a building permit but still require significant work before financial close or construction.

ANRE establishment authorisation

The establishment authorisation is a separate regulatory milestone for the construction or redevelopment of qualifying energy capacities.

Under the ANRE framework applicable in 2026, an application may be submitted from the date of issuance of the ATR and no later than 30 days after conclusion of the connection agreement. The applicable documentation covers, among other matters, project rights, technical elements and financial capacity.

The establishment authorisation therefore provides an additional regulatory filter beyond the ATR, connection agreement and building permit.

It should nevertheless not be equated automatically with financial close or notice to proceed.

7. The June 2026 data sits within a stricter regulatory environment

The ANRE report is a market snapshot. Its commercial significance becomes clearer when read together with the regulatory changes introduced in 2026.

Financial guarantee for the establishment authorisation

For relevant applications submitted after the entry into force of ANRE Order no. 16/2026, applicants must constitute a financial guarantee of EUR 30/kW, calculated by reference to the installed capacity stated in the ATR for each generation technology.

The guarantee must remain valid until issuance of the completion-reception record for the construction works, subject to the conditions and exceptions established by the regulation.

For a 100 MW project, the nominal guarantee would amount to EUR 3 million.

For a 500 MW project, it would amount to EUR 15 million.

This changes the economics of maintaining large development portfolios. Developers must allocate significant balance-sheet or guarantee capacity before the project reaches operation.

New capacity-allocation regime

Romania is also transitioning toward the allocation of available network capacity through competitive procedures for qualifying new projects.

For the 2026 allocation process, applicants are required to provide a participation guarantee of EUR 20,000/MW of requested capacity.

These measures are designed to introduce stronger financial discipline and reduce purely speculative occupation of network capacity.

From a business perspective, they are likely to produce:

These outcomes are analytical inferences from the new financial requirements rather than conclusions stated in the ANRE information note itself.

8. Likely market outcomes

A smaller but more credible pipeline

The 91.1 GW figure demonstrates enormous market appetite, but the regulatory direction is toward stricter proof of seriousness.

Financial guarantees, authorisation deadlines and closer links between connection rights and project progress are likely to reduce the number of projects that can remain indefinitely in the pipeline without meaningful execution.

The result may be a smaller nominal pipeline but a more credible one.

A premium for advanced projects

Projects holding:

should command a growing premium over projects that have only early-stage grid documentation.

For M&A transactions, headline MW capacity will become increasingly less useful as a standalone valuation metric.

Value will depend on maturity, enforceability and deliverability.

Increased project consolidation

The financial and regulatory burden of maintaining large portfolios may lead to:

Developers with strong origination capability but limited balance-sheet capacity may increasingly partner with capital providers earlier in the development cycle.

Greater importance of storage

The 9.1 GW storage-related pipeline demonstrates that investors already recognise the need for flexibility.

As renewable penetration increases, storage may become increasingly relevant to:

However, storage value will depend on MWh duration, degradation, connection structure, market-access arrangements and the availability of bankable optimisation contracts.

Grid delivery as the main execution bottleneck

The volume concentrated on Transelectrica’s network suggests that transmission delivery may become one of the defining constraints of the Romanian energy transition.

The market may therefore increasingly distinguish between:

The existence of a connection agreement should not be interpreted as proof that all relevant network works will necessarily be delivered on the project’s preferred schedule.

9. What investors and lenders should verify

The ANRE statistics are useful at market level, but investment decisions remain project-specific.

A serious due diligence exercise should verify at least the following.

Source status and connected advice

The primary data source is ANRE's report on renewable electricity projects as of 1 June 2026, titled *Informare proiecte RES - 1 iunie 2026*. The report is a market snapshot and should be reconciled with each project's ATR, connection agreement, permits and ANRE file.

Investors can connect the data to grid connection and permitting support, ANRE regulatory advice, battery storage services and technical grid-interface review. Lenders should combine legal diligence with lender's technical advisory.

This article is general information and does not replace project-level legal, technical or financial due diligence.