Solar

With a solar radiation of 1000 –1300 kWh/m² Romania has a valuable potential for solar energy application. Romania’s geographical distribution of solar energy potential reveals the fact that more than 50% of Romania’s territory benefits from an annual energy flow ranging between 1,000 – 1,300 kWh/m2 per annum. Solar energy potential is given by the average solar energy quantity received in horizontal plane which is estimated at approximately 1,100 kWh/m2 per annum in Romania.

Moreover the country has made efforts to develop the solar energy equipment . Hot water systems as well as systems for drying and industrial application have been installed. Because of the relatively poor quality of the equipment only a small part of these collectors are still in use. Nonetheless Romania has know-how about the installation and the use of solar energy collectors for various purposes.

Given Romania’s meteo-solar climate, a solar - thermal panel can function, within normal safety parameters, from March until October, at conversion efficiency levels ranging between 40% and 90%. Moreover, solar panels can also function efficiently in a hybrid regime with both conventional and unconventional thermal systems. In Romania, solar – thermal systems are most frequently used in individual dwellings for water heating processes.

Passive solar systems are usually incorporated in the building’s envelope, most of the construction materials being conventional. In a thermal rehabilitation work and under normal conditions, the average additional cost for the embedded materials in the new building increases by maximum 20% (for renovated buildings).

Solar energy is converted into electricity using photovoltaic installations consisting of solar modules of different configurations and dimensions. Romania’s exploitable potential for electrical energy generation by photovoltaic systems is approximately 1,200 GWh per annum.

The investment cost for photovoltaic systems has decreased gradually over the past few decades, the price of a solar module currently reaching approximately 6 $ / 1 installed Watt. The price for electrical energy generated by photovoltaic systems ranges between 25-50 cents/kWh. Therefore, when attractive support schems are in place, photovoltaic systems can become an attractive alternative for isolated consumers situated at long distance to the electricity grid and for low consumption levels, compared with the connection to the national Electricity distribution grid, which in this case can be expensive

Romania will promote usage of renewable energy sources by implementing mechanisms for supporting production of energy using these sources (including production of thermal energy and hot water for household consumption), by continuously developing the green certificates market and by attracting private capital investment in this sector.  However, this is included in the electricity tariff, finaly supported and payed by customers.

In Romania, several projects based on photovoltaic systems of different power and functioning regime were initiated, as part of research development and demonstration programs (RD&D). Some of them include:

•    Autonomous systems – for supplying isolated consumers (individual households, socio-cultural centers in Apuseni Mountains, Black Sea shore or the Danube Delta), radio - telecom stations, water pumping systems, public lighting, traffic signaling, in line with the objectives of the rural electrifying program.
•    Systems connected to the electrical grid (photovoltaic pilot stations with mobile panels, building integrated systems etc.)

Advantages: always there; no pollution; interesting as a stand alone solar parc on land or a buildings;

Disadvantages: low efficiency (5-15%); very high initial costs; lack of adequate
storage materials (batteries); high cost to the consumer;

Some projects in solar energy

Solar power in Romania had in 2007 an installed capacity of 0.81 MW. Romania is located in an area with a good solar potential of 210 sunny days per year and with an annual solar energy flux between 1,000 kWh/ m2/year and 1,300 kWh/ m2/year. From this total amount around 600 to 800 kWh/ m2/year is technical feasible.[2] The most important solar regions of Romania are the Black Sea coast, Dobrogea and Oltenia with an average of 1,600 kWh/ m2/year.

Romania was a major player in the solar power industry, installing in the 1970's and 80's around 800,000 square metres (8,600,000 sq ft) of low quality solar collectors that placed the country third worldwide in the total surface of solar thermal application cells. One of the most important solar project was the installing of a 30 kW solar panel on the roof of the Politehnica University of Bucharest that is capacble of producing 60 MWh of electricity per year.

Rominterm, a Romanian company, will install until 2010 a total of 600 solar panels in Mangalia, Constanţa County that will make the city independent in terms of heated water during the summer months and provide around 70% of heated water in the winter months.Another 1,150 solar panels will be used for the generation of electricity spread over an area of 1,400 square metres (15,000 sq ft). Another Romanian city, Alba Iulia, installed a total of 1,700 PV cells on several public buildings that produce 257 MWh of electricity per year. Other cities include Giurgiu with 174 solar panels and 391.5 kW installed capacity and Saturn, Romania with 50 panels and 112 kW installed capacity.

The Covaci Solar Park will be Romania's largest solar power plant at completion having a total of 480,000 solar pannels with a combined capacity of 35 MW and will be located in Timiş County. Another important site is the Gura Ialomiţei Solar Park in Ialomiţa County which will have a capacity of 10 megawatts. Other solar parks include the Satu Mare Solar Park located in Satu Mare County which will have a capacity of 5 to 8 megawatts and the Sfântu Gheorghe Solar Park located in Covasna County that will have a capacity of 2.4 megawatts.

Source: wikipedia
Source:  www.investromania.be
Source: EVD, market survey Romania

Freddy Jacobs
President Camera Imobiliara Belgia Romania
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