Romania's minister of energy Virgil Popescu announced on November 22 that he agreed with his Bulgarian peer Rosen Hristov to resume talks on the project for the 840MW hydropower plant located at Turnu Măgurele - Nikopol on the Danube.

The planned plant, equally shared among the two countries, would generate a total production of 4.4 GWh per year, respectively 2.2 GWh for Romania.

The first studies for this hydropower plant, to be completed together with Bulgaria, were done as early as the 60s. Hidroelectrica CEO, Bogdan Badea, said four years ago that the project is beneficial for Romania and that the company is ready to participate, but he drew attention to the need for a new agreement between the two states.

"The investment involves signing a diplomatic agreement, however - once the will of the states is expressed, Hidroelectrica is ready to participate in the project", Badea said at that time, according to Economica.net.

The project entails two hydroelectric plants identical in terms of equipment and power, one belonging to Romania on the left bank and the other to Bulgaria on the right bank.

Two sites were proposed for the future hydropower complex. In the first site, the one analyzed during the communist period, the total investment of the Romanian side would be EUR 2.57 bln (according to estimates dating four years ago), of which EUR 1.53 bln for the power plant.The second location is cheaper to build, but the hydropower plant placed here would produce less (1.94 GWh produced by turbines with an installed capacity of 420 MW).

The total cost for the Romanian side would be only EUR 2.09 bln, of which the energy investment is approximately EUR 1.25 bln. Regardless of the chosen location, the proposed duration for constructing the hydro-technical complex is eight years.

andrei@romania-insider.com

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