Only 16 percent of the energy consumed in Romania in one year is sold on the Centralized Market for Bilateral Contracts (PCCB), the platform administered by OPCOM. Mihai David, the General Manager of Romania’s largest electricity producer, Hidroelectrica, forecasts that the company will put a terawatt onto the energy market unless the Romanian Energy Regulatory Authority (ANRE) decides this energy must go to the regulated sector (households and companies that did not opt for a supplier).
“My strategy is to sign long-term bilateral contracts, because these are the most profitable for the company, and we can obtain financing based on these,” said David. The official added that the average production cost for one MWh at Hidroelectrica is RON 80 (€19 at a RON 4.2/€1 exchange rate), and the selling price is RON 115-120 (€27-28).
Pompiliu Budulan, Nuclearelectrica’s General Manager, estimates the company will put about 30 percent of the energy generated in 2010 on the power market. The enterprise expects a production similar to that registered this year. The producer has already sold five energy packages on the power market, calling prices ranging from RON 165.5-175 per MWh “good.”
“Our price target is RON 196 for each delivered MWh, but this is the first call. If the market does not react and suppliers do not buy, we will reorient,” said officials of the Turceni Energy Complex, who plan to trade about 60 percent of the produced energy through OPCOM. With the exception of transactions made by Nuclearelectrica, private electricity suppliers refused to participate in the power market administered by OPCOM, and many auctions were cancelled for lack of buyers. Suppliers accuse producers of asking prices 15-20 percent higher than this year, despite the fact that consumption fell some 10 percent and the signs of local industry recovery are minor.
