The National Energy Regulatory Authority (ANRE) has approved National Electricity Transmission Company Transelectrica’s 2026-2035 investment plan and is requiring an accelerated timetable for interconnection projects with Hungary and Bulgaria. ANRE president George Niculescu said the plan represents a strategic commitment to preparing Romania’s transmission network for the next decade: “We approved a plan that is not just a list of investments, but a commitment to prepare Romania’s transmission network for the energy economy of the next decade.” He added that the authority placed particular emphasis on interconnections, “where we required Transelectrica to speed up unfinished works.”
Niculescu noted that Romania exceeded the EU interconnection target in 2024, reaching 18.5%, but recent monitoring shows that minimum cross-border capacity targets were not fully met at the borders with Hungary and Bulgaria. “The objective should not be just the EU target, but as much cross-border capacity as possible,” he said. Under the approved plan, Transelectrica must submit within 30 days an accelerated programme for outstanding works included both in the development plan and in the action plan for increasing cross-border capacity.
ANRE will monitor progress quarterly, including the contribution of modern technologies such as dynamic line rating (DLR) and high-temperature low-sag conductors (HTLS). According to official data, Romania’s interconnection rate reached 18.5% in 2024, above the European target of 15%.
However, the 2025 monitoring report shows that the minimum cross-border capacity targets – up to 70% of the capacity of critical network elements – were not fully met at the borders with Hungary and Bulgaria
The 2026-2035 development plan (PDRET) includes 117 investment works, 25 of them entirely new, covering upgrades to lines and substations, the completion of the national 400 kV ring, increased transmission and interconnection capacity, and network digitalisation. The plan aims to integrate new production and storage capacities, move energy from renewable-rich regions to consumption centres, reduce congestion, provide flexibility tools for producers and consumers, strengthen the national grid, deepen Romania’s integration into the European energy market, and offer greater predictability for investors and industrial consumers. PDRET 2026-2035 translates Romania’s commitments under the European Ten-Year Network Development Plan (TYNDP), Projects of Common and Mutual Interest (PCI/PMI), the national energy strategy and the Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan (PNIESC) into concrete projects. Eight projects in the plan – totalling 25 works – are classified as Projects of Common and Mutual Interest under ENTSO-E coordinated planning. These include the Romania – Hungary interconnection (PCI 2.5) and the CARMEN smart-grid project (PCI 12.2), which introduces advanced monitoring, automation and energy-flow control technologies.
