Since the energy market in Romania has been liberalised, Enel has become the largest investor in distribution networks in this country. The announcement was made by the Romanian Energy Ministry, which confirmed the success of the Electrica SA plan (in charge of the enforcement of post-liberalisation contracts) based on data provided by ANRE (energy market regulator) and the Electrica SA.
Hence, for the first time official sources have attested that Enel is the company that has invested the most in Romania within the energy sector, respecting and even going beyond the commitments made between 2005 and 2008, when the Group acquired three local distribution companies. According to an announcement by the Romanian government, from 2009 to 2011, Enel Distributie Muntenia Sud invested €378.1 million compared to the €218 million under the privatisation plan. From 2005 to 2009, Enel Distributie Banat invested 642.1 million New Lei (RON) (about €178 million) compared to the expected 232 million RON, while Enel Distributie Dobrogea, in the same period, allocated 514.2 million RON (about €143 million) compared to the agreed 269.3 million RON.
'It is a crucial factor, both because it is an official recognition of Enel's commitment in Romania and because it closes the chapter on the past years and on the decision to liberalise the sector, through the privatisation of specific companies. This has had positive results and has allowed to start discussing the future of power supply networks,' said Toni Volpe, Enel Country Manager in Romania. 'The future of Enel is in networks digitalisation: it is what the country needs and it is perfectly consistent with our business strategies at the Group level.'
The digitalisation process must start from the basics – the electronic meter. This year we will launch a pilot project with 30,000 meters and we will proceed with a massive diffusion which we expect to be complete within the next five years, respecting the European legislation' says Volpe. 'We will also have many other opportunities to introduce our digital technology in networks management, starting from the high voltage where we have already launched remote control systems and we are completing the renovation of primary stations. A type of intervention that will we soon also apply to medium voltage power lines,' concluded Volpe.