Preliminary assessment of the third payment request of Romania (2024)

  ii.   Decision 1357/25.05.2023 issued by the National Energy Regulator (‘ANRE’) modifying
        License no. 1085 for the commercial exploitation of capacities for the production of
        electricity and heat in cogeneration, issued to the operator CE Oltenia ('CEO’), withdrawing
        Power Unit No. 3 – 330 MW from the Rovinari Thermal Power Plant from operation and
        mothballing Power Unit No. 7 – 330 MW from the Turceni Thermal Power Plant;
  iii.  Address CEO-SE Roviniari No. 449/SER/12.05.2023 in which CE Oltenia is notifying the
        Transmission System Operator (‘TSO’) Transelectrica of the definitive withdrawal of Power
        Unit No. 3 – 330 MW from the Rovinari Thermal Power Plant from operation and the
        mothballing of Power Unit No. 7 – 330 MW from the Turceni Thermal Power Plant;
  iv.   Certification No. 27295/30.05.2023 from the TSO Transelectrica in which the National
        Power Transmission Company Transelectrica certifies the withdrawal of Power Unit No. 3 –
        330 MW from the Rovinari Thermal Power Plant from operation and the mothballing Power

        Unit No. 7 – 330 MW from the Turceni Thermal Power Plant;
   v.   Ministerial Order no. 326/2024 issued by the Ministry of Energy amending the Annex to
        Order No. 112/2024 of the Minister for Energy approving the rules on regulating the
        activation of lignite-fired electricity generation capacity provided for in Article 4 (1) (a) of
        Government Emergency Order No nr.108/2022 on decarbonising the energy sector;
  vi.   Notification No. 1075/DG/12.05/2023 of CE Oltenia informing the Ministry of Energy about
        the withdrawal of 330 MW of production capacity from operation and the mothballing of
        330 MW of production capacity;
 vii.   Notification No. 1074/DG/12.05.2023 of CE Oltenia informing ANRE about the withdrawal
        of 330 MW of production capacity from operation and the mothballing of 330 MW of
        production capacity;
viii.   Address No. 34444/25.07.2023 containing the attestation by the TSO Transelectrica of

        physical separation of Power Unit no. 3 of the Rovinari Thermal Power Plant from the
        national electricity systems;
  ix.   Decision of the CE Oltenia Directorate No. 54/29.06.2023 to decommission and capitalise by
        way of scrapping fixed assets related to Power Unit no. 3 from the Rovinari Thermal Power
        Plant.
Analysis:

The justification and substantiating evidence provided by the Romanian authorities cover all constitutive elements of the target.

A cumulative 2 355 MW of coal and lignite-fired installed electricity production capacity have been shut down, out of which 2 025 MW have been decommissioned and 330 MW have been mothballed.

With its Decision 1357/25.05.2023 modifying License no. 1085 for the commercial exploitation of capacities for the production of electricity and heat in cogeneration, granted to the operator CE Oltenia, the National Energy Regulator (ANRE) withdrew the licence for Power Unit No. 3 – 330 MW from the Rovinari Thermal Power Plant to operate and amended the licence for Power Unit No. 7 – 330 MW from the Turceni Power Plant, requiring that the latter be kept mothballed until the end of 2025. The withdrawal and mothballing were certified by the Transmission System Operator (TSO) Transelectrica in its Certification No. 27295/30.05.2023. The measures are further demonstrated by the notifications No. 1075/DG/12.05/2023 and No. 1074/DG/12.05/2023 by CE Oltenia respectively notifying the Ministry of Energy and ANRE of the withdrawal of 330 MW of production capacity from operation and the mothballing of 330 MW.

When added to the decommissioning of 1 695 MW of coal and lignite-fired installed electricity production capacity achieved under target #113, positively assessed in the context of Romania’s first