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September 4, 2025
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Montenegro’s state power utility posts EUR 24.5 million loss in H1 2025

Montenegro’s state-owned power utility, Elektroprivreda Crne Gore, posted a EUR 24.5 million loss in the first half of 2025, a 620% increase compared to the same period last year.

The main reasons for the poor results were a production halt at the Pljevlja coal power plant and a wide gap between the purchase price of imported electricity and the selling price for consumers connected to the distribution network, according to Elektroprivreda Crne Gore (EPCG).

EPCG’s total revenue in the first half of 2025 amounted to EUR 208.1 million, while total expenses reached EUR 234.7 million.

The operating result was a EUR 24.5 million loss, which is EUR 21 million more than in the first half of 2024, when the loss was EUR 3.5 million. This represents a 620% increase compared to the same period in 2024, according to EPCG’s half-year report.

Total electricity production was nearly 25% lower year-on-year

A significant factor affecting the business result was the halt in production at the Pljevlja thermal power plant from March 31 this year due to final works on environmental reconstruction and the regular annual overhaul. As a result, the plant’s utilization rate for the first six months was only 48.8%.

In the first half of 2025, TPP Pljevlja produced nearly 400 GWh of electricity, 7.9 GWh or 2.02% above the plan, but almost 18%, or around 87 GWh, less than in the same period in 2024.

The total output at hydropower plants – Piva, Perućica, and small hydropower plants (SHP) – was 658 GWh, which is 22% or 159 GWh less than in 2024.

The company spent EUR 35.8 million more on electricity imports

The total output of all power plants was 1,058 GWh, or 78.8% of the plan, according to the report. This also represents a decrease of 26%, or 278 GWh.

During the first half of 2025, EPCG imported 656 GWh of electricity for EUR 62.4 million. The average price was EUR 95.09 per MWh. In the same period last year, imports totaled 430.3 GWh, at an estimated cost of EUR 26.6 million, according to the report. This marked a 52% increase in the volume of imports.

The company has received consent to borrow EUR 50 million to finance electricity imports.

The report underlined that the price charged to consumers on the distribution grid is significantly lower than the purchase price of imported electricity. The gap has a major negative impact on EPCG’s results, the company noted.

Electricity is imported at above EUR 100 per MWh and supplied to distribution consumers at an average price of around EUR 45 per MWh, according to the report.

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September 4, 2025
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Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala buys into Romanian renewables developer Rezolv Energy

Mubadala Investment Company, a sovereign investment fund from Abu Dhabi, is acquiring a stake in Rezolv Energy, a major renewable energy investor in Romania, which is developing the largest solar park in Europe.

Mubadala is setting up a joint venture with Rezolv Energy’s owner, sustainable infrastructure investment fund Actis, for joint control of the Romanian firm, whose ongoing projects in the country exceed 2 GW, according to a report by Profit.ro.

The Mubadala-Actis joint venture, which has received the green light from the European Commission, will be created through the purchase of shares and securities.

Mubadala, with assets under management of USD 300 billion as of the end of 2024, is wholly owned by the government of Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The transaction has been cleared by the European Commission

Rezolv Energy’s ongoing projects in Romania include the construction of a photovoltaic park with an installed capacity of 1,044 MW in Arad County, called Dama Solar. Once in operation, it is expected to be the largest solar park in Europe. The investment envisages a battery energy storage system (BESS) with 500 MW of operating power.

Rezolv Energy is developing the 1,044 MW Dama Solar project and over 1 GW of wind farms in Romania

Its portfolio in Romania also includes a 600 MW wind project in Constanța county and a 461 MW wind park in Buzău county. The company has already signed a grid connection agreement for the facility in Constanța.

The company won four contracts for difference (CfD), for a total capacity of 951.2 MW, in the first two auctions organized by the Romanian Ministry of Energy, according to Profit.ro.

Rezolv Energy was launched by Actis in 2022, with an initial investment of EUR 500 million. It is now active in Romania, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Luxembourg, Bulgaria, and Slovakia, with a total portfolio of 2.5 GW of solar and wind projects.

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September 4, 2025
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Germany, France move to bridge nuclear divide with joint EU energy policy

Germany and France have agreed to work together on shaping a common European energy policy that would include nuclear power as a low-carbon energy source. The deal could help resolve the two countries’ long-standing division over the role of nuclear energy in Europe’s green transition.

Paris and Berlin might offer joint proposals for the European Union’s energy policy through 2040 that would “ensure non-discrimination among all net-zero and low-carbon energy technologies in their respective contribution to European energy, sustainability, and climate goals,” according to a joint economic agenda adopted at a meeting in Toulon, France.

The common EU policy would ensure non-discrimination among all net-zero and low-carbon energy technologies

In Europe, nuclear power is widely considered a low-carbon technology that provides reliable energy while also supporting climate goals and reducing dependence on fossil fuels, with France advocating for its revival. However, Germany shut down its last remaining reactors in 2023 and is focusing on renewables as a way to achieve climate neutrality.

The two countries have now agreed to promote technology neutrality and try to harmonize their respective energy policies in the interests of Europe, said French President Emmanuel Macron.

In turn, France will support Germany’s plans to establish hydrogen interconnections to southwestern Europe. This includes the long-stalled Southwestern Hydrogen Corridor, which connects Spain, Portugal, France, and Germany, according to reports. The corridor comprises the pipeline projects H2Med and HY-FEN.”

Germany and France will support hydrogen interconnections with Spain and Portugal

The initiative will be continuously supported through a Franco-German working group on hydrogen, according to the Franco-German Economic Agenda.

The two countries’ deal to jointly lead the way in shaping a competitive, secure, sustainable, and decarbonized European energy market also involves supporting a potential new electricity interconnector that transmission system operators Amprion, TransnetBW, and RTE are assessing, reads the document.

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September 4, 2025
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Croatia identifies another city with geothermal potential for district heating

The testing of an exploratory well near the Croatian city of Osijek has confirmed the area’s geothermal potential, according to the Croatian Hydrocarbon Agency.

This marks the second successful completion of exploratory activities within a broader project aimed at developing geothermal potential for district heating in Croatia. At the end of June, good news came from an exploration site in Velika Gorica.

The exploratory activities in Osijek have cost an estimated EUR 8 million, with the funding secured from the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP).

Testing and measurements of the Osijek GT-1 (OsGT-1) well revealed a reservoir temperature exceeding 100 degrees Celsius, with an estimated thermal capacity of nearly 5 MW.

Temperatures are lower than in Velika Gorica

These results confirm that Osijek possesses significant geothermal resources with potential applications in district heating, agriculture, and the area’s economic development, according to the Croatian Hydrocarbon Agency.

“Geothermal energy is one of the most stable renewable energy sources, and our research confirmed the substantial potential of reservoirs in the Pannonian Basin and a strategic opportunity for achieving long-term supply security and decarbonization of the energy system,” stressed Marijan Krpan, president of the agency’s management board.

Exploratory activities continue in other locations

Due to local geological specifics and the shallower depth of the reservoir, temperatures in Osijek are lower than those in Velika Gorica. The agency noted that although the geological conditions and reservoir depths differ between Velika Gorica and Osijek, geothermal energy is flexible enough to be adapted to local needs and used efficiently and sustainably.

According to Osijek’s mayor, Ivan Radić, geothermal energy is becoming a locally available and sustainable heating source not only for Osijek residents but also for businesses.

Following Osijek and Velika Gorica, exploratory activities will continue in Vinkovci, and later in Zaprešić. After completing all exploratory activities, additional wells are planned at sites with confirmed geothermal potential.

In addition to the state-funded activities, private companies such as ENNA Geo are also engaged in geothermal research.

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September 4, 2025
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Romanian prosumers propose measures to cut electricity bills by up to 60%

The Association of Energy Prosumers and Communities in Romania has called on the government to implement five measures that could swiftly reduce electricity bills.

The measures target both individual homes and multi-apartment buildings, and results could be visible in up to 12 months, according to the Association of Energy Prosumers and Communities (APCE).

The association pointed out that the measures are needed because consumers in Romania pay some of the highest energy prices in Europe.

The first measure is related to energy communities, as the country is lagging in implementing the relevant EU legislation. The association claims that the introduction of energy communities lowered energy bills in Spain by 60%.

The association called on the authorities to involve civil society in the lawmaking process

Such structures allow citizens to directly manage their energy production, distribution, and storage, achieving independence from traditional suppliers and producers, the APCE noted.

The association called on the authorities to involve civil society in the lawmaking process, and underlined that adoption could be completed in three months, with bill reductions within 3–12 months.

The second measure involves multi-apartment buildings. Through a simple legislative change, residents could become direct beneficiaries of solar energy produced on the roofs of their buildings, the APCE pointed out.

Romania could install up to 4,000 MW of rooftop solar on multi-apartment buildings

Romania, the association notes, could install up to 4,000 MW of solar power plants on 4,200 hectares of apartment building roofs. The proposed legislative changes could be adopted within three months, with results visible after 3–12 months.

Mini-PV systems for balconies have the potential to lower electricity bills by 60%, according to the APCE’s calculation. In Germany, over a million such systems have already been installed, leading to monthly bill reductions of more than 60%.

The association estimates that the legislation needed for their rollout could be adopted within 30 days, and results could be visible immediately after installation.

Tackling suppliers’ excessive profit margins

The regulation of the supply margin for energy produced by prosumers is the fourth proposed measure. The association said that in 2025, a surplus of almost 2 billion kWh of renewable energy would be injected into the grid by prosumers.

Romania’s regulator, ANRE, left it to suppliers to set their profit margins, resulting in high prices for electricity resold to consumers.

PACE calls for a clear regulation of the supply margin to ensure that electricity produced by prosumers reduces consumer bills.

Reducing transmission tariffs for the TSO

The estimated timeframe is up to three months for the measure to be adopted, with visible reductions in bills expected immediately after implementation.

The final measure is a reduction of transmission tariffs for the transmission system operator (TSO) Transelectrica.

Even though the TSO does not transport prosumers’ surplus electricity, it still charges them for the service. It collected over EUR 18 million in 2024, the APCE claims, adding that the figure for 2025 is estimated to be EUR 35 million.

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September 2, 2025
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Climate won’t suffer if Romanian coal power plants keep running – energy minister

The Romanian government is in talks on postponing the coal power plant closures envisaged under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), according to Energy Minister Bogdan Ivan. The current deadline for decommissioning these plants is the end of 2025, but Romania is hoping to push it back to 2030.

Ivan noted that Romania’s gas and coal power generation has dropped by 56% over the past decade, with around 7,000 MW of capacity closed and only 1,200 MW replaced.

“Now I am convinced that the world’s climate will not suffer so much if Romania continues to keep its coal-fired power plants in the Jiu Valley,” the minister said, according to Profit.ro.

Ivan: Keeping the Jiu Valley coal power plants operational will not hurt the global climate

He also stressed that Romania has pursued the most aggressive decarbonization policy in the European Union, choosing 2025 as a deadline to eliminate coal-fired electricity generation, compared to Poland or Germany, which intend to use coal until 2040–2050.

Ivan explained that wind and solar capacity in Romania has been growing, but that the country needs more battery storage to better utilize its output.

Romania needs more battery storage for the growing wind and solar capacities

Romania’s former energy minister, Sebastian Burduja, said earlier this year that the country intended to extend the operation of coal-fired power plants because there was no other option to ensure energy security and replace existing capacities.

He said in January that the operating period of coal-fired power plants was expected to be extended by three years.

According to earlier reports, Romania intends to stop coal mining by 2032 at the latest, while replacing conventional power plants in the meantime. Romania’s largest producer of coal-based electricity is state-owned power utility CE Oltenia, based in Târgu Jiu. It is also the country’s third-largest producer of electricity.

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