Energy developer Rezolv to start building EU's largest solar park in Romania this summer

By Luiza Ilie

BUCHAREST, July 15 (Reuters) - Rezolv aims to expand its renewable energy portfolio in central and southeastern Europe to 4 to 5 gigawatts by 2030 from almost 2.3 GW currently, Chief Executive Alastair Hammond told Reuters.

The company is preparing to begin construction in late summer on a 1 GW solar project in western Romania that is expected to be finished in late 2028.

Rezolv, launched in 2022 with backing from British sustainable infrastructure investor Actis, develops and operates renewable energy projects across central and southeastern Europe.

Its 2.3 GW portfolio spans solar and wind assets in Romania and Bulgaria that are operating, under construction or in late-stage financing.

The Dama Solar project, one of Europe's largest solar developments and the biggest in the European Union, comes as Romania looks to increase renewable generation as it phases out coal and seeks to strengthen energy security.

"We still have an ambition to get to 4 or 5 gigawatts, probably by 2030," Chief Executive Officer Alastair Hammond told Reuters in an interview.

He said Dama Solar, which will have enough capacity to power 280,000 households, was in late stage financing and construction was due to start shortly.

The company had initially aimed to contract as much of its capacity as possible through long-term power purchasing agreements with commercial consumers, but the market has been slow to pick up speed.

Hammond said the energy crisis after the war in Ukraine and continued uncertainty made companies cautious about entering into long-term power offtake contracts but that interest had picked up as firms have 2030 decarbonisation targets to meet.

Rezolv has so far signed seven PPAs with companies including T-Mobile Czech Republic, Slovak Telekom and Bekaert.

It is also the largest beneficiary of government tenders for green projects funded through a low-carbon energy-support scheme paid for with European Union funds, based on Contracts for Difference (CfD), which set the power price at an agreed level for 15 years, with 971.2 MW of a total 4.6 GW auctioned.

(Reporting by Luiza Ilie, Editing by Louise Heavens)