“Smart guys from energy” have arrived on OLX: “I am selling a photovoltaic project with all approvals, price negotiable” / What the authorities are doing to stop speculating with solar parks, now for sale on the Internet

Speculation with photovoltaic projects has reached such a level that some companies, after obtaining approvals from ANRE and network operators, no longer develop the projects, but put them up for sale on the Internet: “An excellent investment opportunity”. The situation was also reported by the president of the National Regulatory Authority, George Niculescu.

• Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan has accused on several occasions that serious companies that want to invest in electricity production are blocked by “speculative investments, of the type of smart guys”, who obtain documentation and technical approvals for connection for investments that they do not intend to make, but only to sell.

Now, such projects have come up for sale on the Internet, and HotNews has reviewed several such “offers” on OLX.

“250,000 euros, negotiable”

For example, a 2.8 MW project with “ready to build” storage is sold in Mărașu commune, Brăila county, for 140,000 euros, negotiable:

“In an area with excellent solar radiation. The project is ready for the immediate start of construction work. Storage System (BESS): Storage capacity for 4 hours, optimizing the delivery of energy to the grid. Land Area: 3.3 Hectares. All necessary approvals and authorizations have been obtained. Land Regime: Concession for a duration of 49 years, with a specific clause of the possibility of purchase.”

“I am selling a 2.3 MW photovoltaic park project with a financing contract with non-refundable funds signed by the Ministry of Energy. The project is carried out on a 2.5-hour plot of land and has all approvals. ATR expired. This investment in renewable energy will contribute to the transition to a greener and more sustainable future. Price 250,000 euros, negotiable,” says another ad posted by Sorin.

“Car/Real Estate Trade-ins and Acceptance”

Another photovoltaic project is sold for 150,000 euros in Sălaj county.

“I am selling a 1.07 MW photovoltaic park – Ready to Build, located in Zăuan, IP commune, Sălaj county. The land is sold only together with the project! The project is in the Ready to Build stage, with all the documents obtained for the start of the works. I also accept car/real estate exchanges”, says Remus, the author of the post.

Another announcement concerns the sale of a 1 MW photovoltaic park in Oradea, for 298,000 euros:

“The package includes: 12,300 sqm land, strategically located opposite the Oradea airport, perfect for the implementation of a long-term green energy solution. Full authorization and DEER and ATR approved studies, with detailed documentation made available to the buyer. Complete power supply solution post transformer 20/0.4 kV with power cable according to ATR – DEER (Electrica).

The project has an estimated investment recovery time of 6 years, based on the production of electricity, without taking into account the potential for valorization of the 12,300 m2 land after this period”.

Those who posted the ad say that “the project has all the necessary documents and permits, including the feasibility study and estimates of profitability from the sale of energy, which are available to buyers.”

“This is an excellent investment opportunity for those interested in long-term sustainability and profit,” the seller adds.

What the head of ANRE says

The situation was also reported by George Niculescu, the head of ANRE, the institution that regulates the energy and gas market in Romania.

“I entered OLX and I see this: investment opportunity, advanced photovoltaic project, 2 MW, 611,000 lei and 90 money. The price includes: technical approval for connection obtained, connection contract signed with the distribution operator, environmental approval obtained, financing approved. The structure of the transaction is flexible and can also be adapted according to the investor's strategy. For additional details, the discussions are held privately.

It's not the only announcement of its kind. We are not going to seriously develop energy production in Romania,” said the president of ANRE, according to a video posted on his Facebook page.

The statements were made at a public consultation on the tightening of the conditions under which approvals are obtained for the start of photovoltaic projects.

How ANRE wants to change the rules for connecting to the energy network

In March, ANRE debated a project that provides for the increase of financial guarantees for connection to the electricity network from 5% to 20% of the connection tariff, so as to reduce the number of projects that block capacity in the network, without being carried out.

According to the document, the capacity reserved for energy projects that do not advance to the implementation phase will be unlocked.

The most important change proposed by ANRE aims to increase the financial guarantee that developers must submit in order to obtain the technical approval for connection (ATR). For projects with approved power for evacuation greater than 1 MW, the guarantee would increase from 5% to 20% of the value of the connection tariff.

According to ANRE, the project aims at “holding developers responsible for connection to the network and reducing speculative capacity reservations”.

The data analyzed by the authority show that the current mechanism, introduced in 2024, did not have the expected effects. Of the projects for which the 5% guarantee was established, only approximately 12% reached the stage of signing the connection contracts, and less than 1% obtained both the connection contract and the necessary authorizations for implementation.

At the same time, there are hundreds of energy projects being analyzed for connection. Only in the case of projects of at least 5 MW submitted before January 1, 2026, no less than 663 projects, with a total capacity of approximately 57 GW, have solution studies submitted to grid operators for approval.

The government, dissatisfied with ANRE's proposals. Bolojan: “90% of projects are speculative”

These changes were announced by ANRE after Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan accused on several occasions that serious companies that want to invest in electricity production are blocked by “speculative, smart-guy investments”.

According to the Prime Minister, these “smart guys” obtain documentation and technical approvals for connection for investments that they do not intend to make, but only to sell.

The government says, however, that the increase in the financial guarantee that developers must submit to obtain the technical approval for connection (ATR), proposed by ANRE, although necessary, is not enough to solve the problem. “Currently, only a small part of the approved projects actually end up being built, which indicates the existence of a significant speculative phenomenon. In this context, the Chancellery of the Prime Minister proposes firmer and more effective measures”, the Government sent on April 15.

In a point of view submitted to ANRE, the Government proposes two other options:

• a fixed guarantee of EUR 30 for each kW installed – a simple and transparent formula that directly links the amount of the guarantee to the size of the project;
• a mixed formula, which combines 50% of the connection tariff with 20 EUR/kW installed, so that both the size of the project and the actual costs in the network are taken into account.

In addition, the guarantee will have to be submitted with the application for connection, and the enforcement of the guarantee will be done when the project is abandoned without any justification. Also, the guarantee will be refunded gradually as the project progresses.

“The goal is that speculative projects, which occupy capacities in the network without being implemented, lose their authorizations, and projects that have financing can be carried out in the shortest possible time, thus contributing to the increase of energy production”, wrote Ilie Bolojan, in a post on Facebook.

The prime minister claims that speculative projects slow down the entry of energy production into the grid, which translates into higher costs for economic agents as well as the population.

“Currently, access to the networks is blocked by a very large number of technical approvals for connection that do not materialize. We have approved projects almost 10 times more than the real need, but more than 90% of them are speculative and are not realized. They block serious investors, who are either forced to buy projects or bear additional costs for connection”, explained the prime minister.