The US is involved in hydroelectric and nuclear energy in Romania
The United States consolidates its energy partnerships with Romania and Bulgaria, with emphasis on the development of hydroelectric plants with pumping accumulation and the extension of nuclear and geothermal energy cooperation.
In the margin of the business forum of the three seas initiative, held in Warsaw, Romanian Minister of Energy, Sebastian Burduja, and his Bulgarian counterpart, Zhecho Stankov, met with American Energy Secretary, Chris Wright. The discussions targeted bilateral strategic projects in progress, but also new initiatives in the field of clean energy.
Minister Burduja has announced that Romania will benefit from American support for the elaboration of the feasibility and feasibility studies necessary to carry out hydroelectric plants with pumping in the Carpathian Mountains chain. A memorandum has already been signed between Hidroelectrica and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in the US.
« Romania and the United States share a common vision for a safe, accessible and clean energy future, » Burduja said, noting that these projects will place Romania « at the head of Europe » in terms of green energy storage.
At the same time, the Romanian official emphasized the involvement of American companies in major nuclear projects: small modular reactors (nuscale), units 3 and 4 from the Cernavoda power station (in partnership with Fluor and Sargent & Lungy), as well as a HVDC type interconnection. In Bucharest, Elcen collaborates with the American company Sage Geosystems for the use of geothermal sources in centralized heating. In offshore, the Transocean Barents platform conducts drilling within the Neptun Deep project.
For his part, Bulgarian Minister Zhecho Stankov confirmed interest in advanced American technologies. Bulgaria is about to build two new nuclear units at the Kozldui power station, in partnership with Westinghouse, using AP1000 – a premiere in Europe.
In addition, Bulgarian and American officials discussed the development of new hydroelectric plants, but also about exploring new oil and gas reserves in the Black Sea. Long -term plans include the construction of « artificial intelligence gigafrics », as part of the innovative energy infrastructure.
Among the challenges discussed by the three parties were the increase in energy prices, the lack of regional interconnections and the economic impact of carbon emission certificates, in the context of the transition to cleaner energy sources.
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