Romanian generation fell to around 2.9 GW on the evening of Oct. 3, while instantaneous imports approached 3.4 GW. Cross-border inflows were therefore within roughly 600 MW of Transelectrica’s estimated maximum import capability of around 4 GW. The situation tightened further on Oct. 5 after unit 5 at the Turceni lignite plant tripped following a boiler failure.
Turceni outage and reduced coal output
The tripped unit is a 285 MW coal block, and it was Turceni’s only operational unit at the time. It is provisionally expected to return on Oct. 10. After the outage, Romanian coal generation fell below 350 MW.
Evening balance pressure and reliance on imports
The Turceni failure occurred during an already difficult period for the power system. Nuclear availability has been constrained, hydropower output remains weak, and solar generation disappears rapidly during the evening peak. Wind production has also been volatile.
With domestic renewable output falling, Romania becomes increasingly dependent on Bulgaria, Hungary, and other neighbouring markets. Imports act as a safety valve, but their effectiveness depends on both available cross-border capacity and generation availability elsewhere in Southeast Europe. Regional prices above €200/MWh indicate tightening conditions in neighbouring markets.
The immediate exposure for Romania is linked to whether enough power can be imported during a narrow group of evening hours when domestic generation is lowest and regional demand is highest. With Turceni offline, that import margin is thinner.