Iberdrola Renovables has been granted a license by the Romanian grid operator Transelectrica to connect a total of 1,500 megawatts (MW) of wind power to the national electricity grid.

This planned output will enable the Spanish giant to generate enough energy in Romania to supply nearly one million households, while also curbing yearly CO2 emissions by 2.6 million tonnes.

The license will pave the way for the company to roll out its Dobruja Project, the most ambitious wind-power project of its kind developed in the world to date that will witness the start-up of 50 wind farms in the region of Dobruja, in south-eastern Romania. The Company intends to build these wind farms between 2011 and 2017.

Iberdrola Renovables is implementing all its projects in Romania with the company Eolica Dobrogea (owned by the Swiss engineering group NEK and the Romanian companies C-Tech and Rokura). This company, which is at the forefront of the Romanian renewables market, has been entrusted with the task of developing the projects - planning and obtaining the construction permits - while Iberdrola Renovables is responsible for constructing and operating the wind farms.

The company intends to begin construction this year on its first wind facility in Romania: the 80-MW Mihai Viteazu farm. This particular project does not fall within the new power concession granted by the Romanian government, but will also be located in the region of Dobruja. The farm is expected to be brought into service in January 2011.

2009 saw Iberdrola Renovables open its first office in the Romanian capital, Bucharest, as part of its ongoing plan to cement its presence in Eastern Europe. The company already has operating wind farms in Poland (161 MW) and Hungary (50 MW), and is working on projects in Estonia (where it is implementing the country's largest wind farm at 150 MW) and Bulgaria. It is also in the process of taking wind measurements in Russia.

Tags: Iberdrola Renovables