Ready Or Not, It's Here: Transelectrica Approves The Grid Capacity Allocation Procedure, Effective Next Year

Amid market rumours (largely reflecting developers' hopes) that the auction-based capacity allocation procedure for new power supplies to the grid would be delayed by the Romanian authorities, on 3 October 2025, CNTEE Transelectrica S.A. (the "TSO") published on its website the Procedure for allocating electricity grid capacity for connecting electricity generation sites (the "Procedure"). The publication nonetheless came after the deadline set by the methodology on the allocation of electricity grid capacity for connecting electricity generation sites, approved by Order no. 53/2024 (the "Methodology").

I. Main rules for the allocation of capacity effective next year:

The main rules for the capacity allocation process set forth by the Methodology and the Procedure to enter into force as of 1 January 2026 are set out below:

• Capacity for production/production and consumption sites (including increase in already booked capacity) with installed capacity equal to or higher than 5 MW will be allocated via annual auctions, replacing the former "first-come, first-served" system. For requests to grant an increase in capacity when installing storage installations equal to or higher than 5 MW, the Methodology provides that the auction mechanism applies only if the capacity increase is for injection (evacuation) into the grid. However, the Procedure introduces an inconsistency that could be read to extend the auction rules to increases for consumption, e.g., where the aim is only to increase the grid offtake capacity for battery charging;
• Regarding the voltage level at which auctions will be organised, the Procedure introduces another discrepancy. While the Methodology provides that auctions are to be held at the 110 kV level and medium voltage, the Procedure stipulates allocation of available capacity in the transmission grid at 220 kV and 400 kV and in the distribution grid at 110 kV;
• The auctions will be organised by the TSO, and all participation bids will be submitted to the TSO, even if the future connection point will be within the distribution grid;
• Participation guarantee:
• • applicants must submit an auction participation guarantee to the TSO in the form of a bank transfer or a letter of guarantee issued by a Romanian credit institution approved by the National Bank of Romania (NBR);
  • the value of the participation guarantee is determined by multiplying the capacity requested by the applicant, expressed in MW, by 1% of the auction's starting price;
  • the participation guarantee will be returned by the TSO within two business days from (i) the conclusion of the auction for applicants whose bids were declared unsuccessful, or (ii) the date the TSO receives the allocation contract signed by the applicants whose bids were declared successful;
• The offered price is the maximum price that the applicant is willing to pay for the allocation of capacity and should be equal to or higher than the auction's starting price;
• Daily auction sessions will run from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. beginning 1 July and will continue until the entire available capacity in the electricity grid is allocated;
• The auction may result in one of four scenarios:
• • if the total auctioned capacity is lower than or equal with the available capacity (absent of any general reinforcement works), then all bids will be accepted. The applicants will conclude directly the capacity allocation contract without having to pay an allocation price;
  • if the total auctioned capacity is lower than or equal with the available capacity plus the capacity resulting from general reinforcement works, all bids are accepted and the applicants will pay the auction starting price;
  • if the total auctioned capacity exceeds the available capacity plus the capacity resulting from general reinforcement works, awards go to the highest-priced bids until the available capacity is allocated, and applicants pay the bid price. The first rejected bid (highest among non-winners) may, if capacity is available, choose to secure capacity for the following year;
  • if the total auctioned capacity exceeds the available capacity (without including the general reinforcement works), the auction will be conducted by considering the value of reinforcement works from the first year of the allocation period that follows the year of the current auction. In such case, the auction starting price will also take into consideration the value of such additional reinforcement works, and offers are accepted only up to the limit of available capacity, with applicants paying the bid price.
• Payment guarantee: an applicant that is awarded capacity shall submit to the TSO the financial guarantee for the payment of the awarded capacity equal to 1% of the value of the allocation contract. The guarantee shall be submitted to the TSO within five business days as of the signing of the allocation contract;
• Payment of the allocation price shall be made as follows: 20% within 30 days of the conclusion of the allocation contract, and the remaining amount pursuant to the instalment payment schedule, but in any event no later than four months from the contract's conclusion;
• The allocation contract shall form part of the documentation required for the issuance of the grid connection permit.

II. Allocation calendar:

Below is the timeline for the annual capacity allocation as envisaged by the current legislation:

• by 15 January of Year N (the year in which the auction takes place), the TSO shall publish on its website the available grid capacities for each year of the allocation period (ten-year period, starting with the second year after the year in which the auction took place) and for each grid area for which no reinforcement works are required;
• between 16 January–28/29 February of Year N, applicants must submit their application requests for capacity allocation to the relevant grid operator. Each application must specify a particular year within the allocation period (which should be the commissioning year of the installation) and a specific grid area where connection is envisaged to take place;
• by 15 March of Year N, the TSO finalises the list of capacity allocation requests that have complete documentation and uploads the capacity requested by each applicant to its website;
• by 15 June of Year N, the TSO updates the global solution study and publishes, for each grid area and allocation year: (i) the available capacity for each grid area, including capacity resulting from additional development works, (ii) the capacity requested by applicants, (iii) the estimated value of the general reinforcement works for each year of the allocation period and for each network area, (iv) the auction starting price for each auction session, and (v) the dates of the auctions, aligned with the years in the allocation period);
• between 15–28 June of Year N, applicants must submit to the TSO the auction participation guarantee;
• starting 1 July of Year N, the TSO organises daily auction sessions to allocate available capacity for each year of the allocation period.

The Methodology represents a fundamental shift in Romania's approach to grid capacity allocation, prioritizing financial commitment and market-based pricing over the first come first served principle. A clear positive is that it deters speculative blockers and channels scarce capacity to serious, well-capitalized developers, however, the success will largely depend on implementation effectiveness and whether it strikes the right balance between preventing speculation and enabling legitimate renewable energy development.

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