At Least 2.174 GWh to Be Deployed! Romania Launches €150 Million Standalone Energy Storage Program

<p>Recently, Romanian Prime Minister and Acting Minister of Energy <strong>Ilie Bolojan</strong> announced that he has signed two energy financing programs, both funded entirely by the <strong>EU Modernisation Fund</strong>, with a total budget of <strong>€250 million</strong>. Of this amount, <strong>€100 million</strong> will be allocated to smart meter upgrades, while <strong>€150 million</strong> will be dedicated to supporting the construction of standalone energy storage projects. According to the plan, Romania aims to facilitate the deployment of <strong>at least 2.174 GWh</strong> of new standalone energy storage capacity through this funding.</p><p><img src="https://energyplanet.oss-cn-shenzhen.aliyuncs.com/uploads/images/20260721193654_fc8b2c9a.png" alt="1280X1280.PNG" loading="lazy" decoding="async" /></p><h2>€150 Million to Support Standalone Energy Storage Projects</h2><p>The storage subsidy is available for <strong>new standalone energy storage projects</strong> and will be awarded through a <strong>competitive bidding process</strong>. According to the information released so far, one of the key evaluation criteria will be the <strong>subsidy requested per unit of storage capacity</strong>, in other words, how much public funding is requested for each MWh of storage capacity installed. Simply put, provided that technical, construction and compliance requirements are met, projects requesting a lower subsidy per MWh will have a greater chance of receiving funding.</p><h3>The subsidy rules include:</h3><ul><li style="text-align:left">The maximum subsidy is €69,000 per MWh for each project;</li><li style="text-align:left">The cumulative subsidy received by a single company may not exceed €15 million;</li><li style="text-align:left">The overall target is to deploy at least 2,174 MWh of standalone energy storage capacity.</li></ul><p style="text-align:left">Based on the maximum subsidy level of <strong>€69,000/MWh</strong>, the <strong>€150 million</strong> budget is sufficient to support approximately <strong>2,174 MWh</strong> of storage capacity, which is broadly in line with Romania's minimum deployment target. However, <strong>2,174 MWh represents only the minimum capacity required under the program.</strong></p><p style="text-align:left">Since projects will compete based on the subsidy requested per unit of storage capacity, if some applicants request less than the maximum subsidy, the same budget could support an even larger amount of storage capacity, potentially resulting in a greater overall deployment.</p><p style="text-align:left">Romanian authorities stated that once these storage projects are commissioned, they will help improve grid stability and ease electricity price pressure during evening peak demand periods. It is worth noting that this <strong>€150 million</strong> storage program was not introduced on a temporary basis. In <strong>March 2026</strong>, the <strong>European Commission</strong> approved Romania's state aid scheme for energy storage, which clearly proposed providing direct investment grants for standalone energy storage facilities through the <strong>EU Modernisation Fund</strong>.</p><p style="text-align:left">The signing of the relevant documents indicates that the program is moving from the EU approval and policy design stage toward project applications and actual implementation.</p><h2>Another €100 Million to Install More Than 800,000 Smart Meters</h2><p>In addition to energy storage, Romania will invest <strong>€100 million</strong> to upgrade its national electricity metering system by installing <strong>more than 800,000 smart meters</strong>. The program is primarily targeted at Romania's licensed electricity distribution operators.</p><p>Compared with conventional electricity meters, smart meters can automatically record and transmit electricity consumption data, reducing the delays and measurement errors associated with manual meter readings and allowing electricity billing to better reflect actual consumption. At the same time, smart meters enable distribution companies to identify abnormal electricity usage, network losses and potential faults more efficiently, improving the digitalization and refined management of the power distribution network.</p><p>According to Romania's plan, the installation of these smart meters is expected to be completed by <strong>the end of 2029</strong>.</p><h2>Final Thoughts</h2><p>The most noteworthy aspect of Romania's latest policy is not simply the <strong>€150 million</strong> subsidy itself, but the fact that Romania is clearly positioning standalone energy storage as an important part of its national power infrastructure.</p><p>The target of deploying <strong>at least 2.174 GWh</strong> of storage capacity will directly create new demand for project development, equipment procurement and engineering construction. For energy storage system integrators, battery manufacturers, PCS suppliers and EPC contractors, Romania is expected to become a new growth market within the European energy storage sector.</p><p>However, this does not mean that every company will be able to enter the market easily. Under the competitive bidding mechanism, projects will compete not only on technical solutions, but also on investment costs per unit of capacity and subsidy requirements. This means that companies with strong cost control capabilities, proven experience in European projects and well-established local service networks will be better positioned to secure opportunities during this market expansion.</p><p>For companies planning to enter the Romanian and Central &amp; Eastern European energy storage markets, now is also an important window to establish local partnerships, connect with project opportunities and develop business channels.</p><p>We are currently promoting sponsorship and partnership opportunities for an upcoming <strong>Romanian Renewable Energy &amp; Energy Storage Summit</strong>, welcoming cooperation with energy storage system integrators, battery and cell manufacturers, PCS and inverter suppliers, EPC contractors, project developers, as well as other renewable energy equipment and technology service providers.</p><p>If you are exploring opportunities in the Romanian and Central &amp; Eastern European energy storage market, or looking to connect with local customers, channels and project partners through the event, feel free to contact us for more information about the sponsorship packages, partnership benefits and event brochure.</p>