Largest Ever Physical Solar Offtake Agreement in Romania
DRI, the EU renewables arm of Ukrainian energy company DTEK, has signed the largest physical solar power purchase agreement (PPA) in Romania with OMV Petrom, the largest integrated energy producer in Southeastern Europe.
The PPA is a package deal, grouping three PPAs with OMV Petrom over an 8.5-year period for approximately 100GWh per year at a fixed rate, including the sale of physical electricity and Guarantees of Origin.
Physical delivery will start in January 2026, with OMV Petrom purchasing 62% of the energy produced by DRI’s Glodeni I and Glodeni II solar plants – these projects have a combined capacity of 113MWp. Commencing in January 2027, OMV Petrom will purchase 50% of the production from DRI’s Vacaresti 126MWp solar project, for which construction will start in 2025.
“This is an important agreement for DRI and the Romanian renewables sector as the largest physical solar offtake deal ever in Romania. Securing long term corporate offtake agreements is essential to facilitate renewable energy growth, and it demonstrates that clean energy offers a competitive alternative. We are delighted to have signed this deal with OMV Petrom, one of the largest and strongest Romanian businesses. With this agreement, we help to both accelerate Romania’s energy transition and OMV Petrom strategic goals,” John Stuart, CEO, DRI, said.
Energy produced by DRI projects not sold under the OMV Petrom PPA will be sold into the market by DTEK’s subsidiary D.TRADING.
DRI currently has 299MW in its portfolio in Romania, including the first wind farm built in the country in a decade. The company aims to deliver 1GW of renewable energy and battery storage projects in Romania by 2030. Across its priority markets, DRI now boasts a 1.3GW portfolio of operating projects, construction projects and others in various stages of development – in line with its goal to build a 5GW portfolio by 2030.
DRI’s primary markets
DRI has four priority countries it operates in: Croatia, Italy, Poland, and Romania.
With a planned 5GW of solar, wind, and battery storage projects in these countries, DRI is driving sustainable energy solutions in Europe. Currently, they have two projects in operation in Romania, and another ten in various stages of development across the continent.
DRI in Romania
The Ruginoasa windfarm and Glodeni solar park are DRI’s first two operational projects and mark the inaugural step in DRI’s target to install 1,000MW renewable energy capacity in Romania.
Together, the Ruginoasa windfarm and Glodeni solar park represent a combined investment of €150 million, yielding an annual electricity output of 225,000 MWh. This output translates to powering more than 58,500 homes annually while concurrently avoiding carbon emissions by 57,000 tonnes per year.
In addition to Ruginoasa, Glodeni I and Glodeni II, DRI will start the construction of a fourth project in Romania in the new year, a 126MWp solar park near Bucharest.
Project Ruginoasa
Situated in lasi country, the Ruginoasa windfarm features ten on-shore Vestas V162-6.0 MW turbines, with an installed capacity of 60MW. Construction began in March 2023 and in just ten months, after obtaining the permits, the windfarm was operational and providing electricity to the grid. It is the first wind farm built in Romania in a decade and is expected to have an energy production lifetime of over 30 years.
Project Glodeni I
Project Glodeni I is a solar park with 53MWp capacity. Located in Mures County, Romania, construction on the park commenced in March 2023, with grid connectivity achieved by January 2024. The project consists of three solar fields equipped with bifacing panels, maximising energy capture from both frontal and rear aspects. Like the Ruginoasa windfarm, this project has an energy production lifetime of 30 years.
Project Glodeni II
Project Glodeni II will be a solar park with 60MWp capacity. Located in Mures County, Romania, is expected to be operational in the summer of 2025, and preparatory construction work started in 2024. The new project, Glodeni II, will be located alongside DRI’s operational 53MW solar park in the same region, Glodeni I. The two projects combined will make one of the largest solar parks in the country in terms of size.
