ANRE orders faster interconnection projects with Hungary and Bulgaria

Romania has exceeded the European target for electricity interconnection, but the country still cannot fully use the cross-border capacity its network is supposed to provide. That gap prompted the National Energy Regulatory Authority, ANRE, to order faster work on links with Hungary and Bulgaria.

ANRE approved the electricity transmission network development plan for 2026-2035. The plan includes 117 investment projects intended to prepare the grid for expanding renewable generation, developing storage and increasing electricity exchanges with neighboring countries.

Romania’s interconnection rate reached 18.5% in 2024, above the European target of 15%. That indicator measures exchange capacity against generation capacity, but it does not fully show how much electricity can actually move through cross-border networks. A 2025 monitoring report found that targets for making at least 70% of critical network capacity available for cross-border trade had not been fully met at the borders with Hungary and Bulgaria.

“Romania has exceeded the European target related to the interconnection rate, but recent lessons show how important interconnection capacity is for getting through delicate moments for the national power system, such as periods when temporarily higher electricity imports are needed,” ANRE President George Niculescu said. He said the goal should not be limited to meeting the European indicator, but should include making greater use of existing cross-border capacity.

ANRE gave Transelectrica 30 days to prepare an acceleration program for unfinished projects included in both the network development plan and the action plan for increasing cross-border capacity. The regulator will monitor the program every quarter. It also wants the document to assess technologies such as dynamic line rating and high-temperature, low-sag conductors, which can improve use of existing infrastructure and increase the amount of electricity carried by some lines.

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Romania has exceeded the European target related to the interconnection rate, but recent lessons show how important interconnection capacity is for getting through delicate moments for the national power system, such as periods when temporarily higher electricity imports are needed.