The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is lending more than EUR 46 million as part of a EUR 93 million financing package to build and operate Urleasca Wind Farm, a 102 MW onshore wind farm in Romania, the institution announced. 

Urleasca Wind Farm is expected to generate 277 GWh a year of renewable energy and save about 115,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually.   

Urleasca Wind Farm SRL, a Romanian company, is equally co-owned by BIG Shopping Centers ltd and MEGA OR ltd, two Israeli companies that own and develop shopping malls and are listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. 

BIG Group is the controlling shareholder of AFI Properties, which develops and manages yield-bearing real estate in Israel and Eastern Europe - Romania, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Serbia.

 "We are excited to support BIG MEGA Renewable Energy's first renewable energy project in the EBRD's region. The wind farm is expected to benefit from corporate Power Purchase Agreements and boost Romania's increase in renewables capacity, which is targeted to grow by adding 11.9 GW over the coming years," EBRD's Grzegorz Zielinski, Head of Energy Europe, said.

"The signing of the financial agreement for Urleasca Wind Farm is a great milestone and part of a far-reaching strategic move by BIG Mega Renewable Energy to grow its activity in Romania and the Balkans. This project marks a major step on Romania's path to green energy transition, and I'm sure it will pave the way for other projects in the future," Eran Davidi, CEO of BIG MEGA Renewable Energy, said.  

In 2023, Romania committed to increase the share of renewables in its total energy consumption from 24.3% in 2019 to 36.2% by 2030 by adding 11.9 GW of new renewable capacity. 

The project highlights EBRD's support for Romania's decarburization efforts, "which will not only improve the environment but safeguard the country's energy security in the context of Russia's war on Ukraine," the bank said.

The EBRD has, to date, invested almost EUR 11 billion in 524 projects in Romania.

(Photo: Welcomia/ Dreamstime)

simona@romania-insider.com