Nofar Energy Romania : Romania’s Renewable Revolution

Romania’s energy transition rarely gets the international recognition it deserves. Backed by a publicly listed parent group, a growing book of European Bank for Reconstruction and Development-financed assets, and a 870-megawatt solar photovoltaic/1.9-gigawatt-hour battery energy storage system pipeline, Nofar Energy Romania is positioning the country, and itself, as one of the most investable renewable energy stories in Central and Eastern Europe. Favi Stelian, Managing Director and CEO of Nofar Energy Romania and COO of Nofar Energy Europe, explains why.

ROMANIA’S RENEWABLE REVOLUTION

Iepurești and Ghimpaţi represent a defining milestone – not only for Nofar Energy Romania, but for the broader Romanian renewable energy sector.”

Two large-scale, ground-mounted solar photovoltaic (PV) parks, Iepurești and Ghimpaţi have now both been successfully energised, ranking amongst the most significant renewable energy developments in Romania, with a combined installed capacity of 315 megawatts (MW) – 169 MW and 146 MW, respectively.

This landmark development has been delivered with meticulous attention to detail – grid connection, environmental impact, land use, and community engagement.

“The scale of what we are delivering here is significant, both in terms of installed megawatt (MW) capacity and the clean energy it will inject into the national grid annually,” acclaims Favi Stelian, Managing Director and CEO of Nofar Energy Romania and COO of Nofar Energy Europe.

What makes Iepurești particularly significant is that it demonstrates the scalability of solar development in the country.

“It’s one thing to build a 20 or 30 MW project – it’s quite another to successfully navigate all the complexities of a development of this magnitude: the grid studies, the financing structure, the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contracting, the permitting.

“Getting all of that right is an enormous team achievement and partnership, and it sends a powerful signal to international investors that Romania is open for business at scale,” Stelian sets out.

ROMANIAN PIPELINE

Nofar Energy Romania is the Romanian subsidiary of Nofar Energy, one of Israel’s leading renewable energy groups and a publicly traded independent power producer with a growing presence throughout Europe.

It operates across the full spectrum of the renewable energy value chain, from project origination and land securing all the way through to permitting, development, construction management, financing, and long-term asset management.

The subsidiary’s client base ranges from institutional investors and lenders who co-invest in or finance its projects to offtakers – utilities, energy retailers, and large industrial corporates.

“Our core focus is utility-scale solar PV and, increasingly, hybrid solar-plus-storage projects that address the intermittency challenge head-on,” outlines Stelian.

“We are active across multiple counties in Romania, with our project portfolio spanning the south and southwest of the country where the solar resource is strongest, but also developments in other regions as we diversify our pipeline.”

Nofar Energy Romania’s pipeline is substantial and reflects the subsidiary’s ambition to become one of the leading renewable energy platforms in the country, with a portfolio of 870 MW of PV and 1.9 GWh of BESS.

The coming months will be particularly exciting, as Nofar Energy Romania brings almost 400 MW online across three major projects – Iepurești and Ghimpaţi, both of which have now been successfully energised, with Slobozia following close behind.

“That is a significant moment for any developer and, for us, it represents the culmination of years of hard work in development, permitting, and construction,” Stelian prides.

“To be advancing 870 MW of solar PV capacity and 1.9 GWh of BESS across our Romanian portfolio is something the whole team should be enormously proud of – it is a concrete demonstration of our execution capability at scale.”

That execution capability is underwritten, in no small part, by a deepening relationship with the EBRD.

The bank has now backed Nofar Energy Romania’s build-out through two separate financing packages: an earlier facility supporting the Iepurești and Ghimpaţi plants, followed by a fresh €192 million package – €64 million from the EBRD’s own account and a further €128 million mobilised from commercial lenders – for the Slobozia plant and the wider Corbii Mari and Iepurești II projects.

Part of that newer package, the Slobozia plant has secured a 15-year contract for difference (CfD) under Romania’s inaugural CfD auction, whilst output from the other projects is sold on the country’s competitive day-ahead market – evidence, as the EBRD itself has noted, of the growing commercial viability of unsubsidised renewable energy in Romania.

What is particularly exciting beyond these near-term connections is Nofar Energy Romania’s move into hybrid configurations – combining solar generation with BESS.

“These hybrid projects are the future of renewables in Romania because they allow us to generate clean energy and dispatch it intelligently, capturing peak pricing moments and providing grid stability services,” insights Stelian.

“This is where I see enormous value creation potential, both for us as a developer and the Romanian energy system.”

DECARBONISATION PUSH

Each project in Nofar Energy Romania’s pipeline is developed according to rigorous standards and, together, they represent a meaningful contribution to the country’s renewable energy targets.

There is a political and regulatory push towards decarbonisation in Romania, which has some of the best solar irradiation in Central and Eastern Europe, excellent wind corridors, and a grid that is actively being developed.

“What makes it truly special right now is the speed of change; when I started in this market, utility-scale solar was still considered ambitious,” Stelian reflects.

“Today, we are talking about gigawatt-scale pipelines, hybrid projects combining solar with storage, and corporate power purchase agreements (PPAs) becoming mainstream. The market is maturing rapidly; being part of that transformation and helping to shape it is genuinely thrilling.”

Romania also has a unique energy position in Europe as one of the few EU member states with a diversified generation mix that includes hydro, nuclear, gas, and now rapidly growing renewables.

With the planned expansion of the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant – which produces around 20 percent of the country’s electricity – and the accelerating pace of renewable development, Romania has the potential to be a genuine clean energy exporter within the European grid and a pillar of energy security for the region.

“That strategic dimension underpins everything we do. Our portfolio of solar and battery storage projects across Romania is not just a collection of energy assets – it is a contribution to Romania’s energy sovereignty and the European clean energy transition.

“Understanding that connection between individual projects and larger policy objectives is what drives our commitment to excellence across every stage of development,” Stelian states.

ESSENTIAL CONTRIBUTOR

There are also challenges, of course, such as grid connection queues, permitting timelines, and regulatory uncertainty.

However, these are precisely what create space for experienced, well-capitalised developers like Nofar Energy Romania to add real value.

“We’re lean but highly experienced – we deliberately keep our core team focused and expert-driven, complemented by a strong network of local and international partners,” notes Stelian.

“What I’m proud of is the quality of people we have: professionals who understand both the technical and commercial complexity of this business.”

There are a few things that make Nofar Energy Romania’s contribution to transforming Romanian energy essential rather than just relevant.

First, the subsidiary brings international expertise and capital to a market that needs both.

“Nofar Energy’s global footprint – across Israel, Spain, Poland, Germany, Italy, the UK, and now Romania – means we bring best practices, lessons learnt from mature markets, and the financial backing to execute at scale,” Stelian explains.

“We are not operating as a single-project developer; we are part of a global, publicly listed group with a proven track record of delivering renewable energy capacity at scale across Israel, the US, and Europe.”

Another is its commitment to quality and longevity, with a long-term ownership mindset that changes how every decision is approached.

“You care about the technical quality of the assets, community relationships, and environmental impact because you are going to live with those decisions for 25 years,” he enlightens.

Perhaps most importantly, Nofar Energy Romania is helping to prove that large-scale renewable development in the country is bankable, investable, and replicable.

“Every project we successfully finance and construct raises the bar and builds confidence for the entire market – that demonstration effect matters enormously.”

AMBITIOUS PRIORITIES

Stelian’s priorities are clear and ambitious; with Iepurești and Ghimpaţi now successfully energised, his immediate focus is on bringing Slobozia online and taking all three Nofar Energy Romania projects to full commercial operation.

Financial close has already been reached for the entire portfolio, which is a major de-risking milestone and strong signal of confidence from financing partners.

“Now it’s about execution – getting these nearly 400 MWs generating clean energy into the Romanian grid as smoothly and efficiently as possible,” affirms Stelian.

Beyond that, the next big frontier for Nofar Energy Romania is BESS, where it is currently directing significant development energy, and reaching financial close on its storage projects is a key priority for the coming period.

“It’s a more complex financing proposition than pure solar – the revenue stack, contract structures, and technology risk assessment – but we are well advanced and I’m confident we will get there,” he states optimistically.

“When we do, it will open up a genuinely new chapter for Nofar Energy Romania, moving us from pure generation into intelligent, dispatchable clean energy.”

Looking at the broader horizon, Stelian’s target is for Nofar Energy Romania to be operating a truly significant portfolio of clean energy capacity within the next three to four years, with hybrid solar-plus-storage projects becoming an increasing proportion of that mix.

“At the European level – and this is something I’m particularly energised by in my new COO role at Nofar Energy Europe – I want to ensure Romania serves as a model for how we develop and operate across Central and Eastern Europe.

“The playbook we have built here, relationships, financing track record, and operational expertise – all of that has real transferability to other markets, which excites me enormously,” he enthuses.

Stelian also wants to deepen Nofar Energy Romania’s PPA market presence in Romania; corporate PPAs are still relatively nascent in the country compared to Western Europe, but demand is growing.

Large industrial and commercial offtakers increasingly want to decarbonise their energy procurement and need long-term, reliable partners to do that with – Nofar Energy Romania seeks to be their partner of choice.

“Finally, I want to continue building and investing in our team here in Romania. The energy transition will only succeed if we have the right people driving it, and I am committed to making this a place where the best energy professionals want to build their careers,” Stelian concludes.