Romania scores high with energy efficiency improvements

As of the end of 2015 the RoSEFF facility has supported 297 energy efficiency projects for the total loan amount of €52.4 million. Out of these, nine projects targeted development of renewable energy technologies, primarily hydro power plants, solar water heaters and biomass fired equipment.

The financed projects save 245,972 MWh of energy per year, which is enough energy to drive a car for over 369 million kilometres. These savings translate into substantial cost savings for the private SME companies that implemented these projects. This way, the companies have increased their competitiveness at the market through decreasing their energy bills – one of the largest cost components in the net production cost.

The achieved energy savings lead to substantial emissions decrease. The RoSEFF supported projects generate the reduction of 91,217 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year, which is equivalent to the amount of CO2 annually absorbed by a forest of over 3.3 million trees.

These projects took place with financial support from the donor. The borrowers who successfully implemented their energy saving projects received the total of €9.2 million of incentive grants, provided by the European Union.

Such investments promote efficient production models and wise, profitable use of resources, which go hand in hand with the positive environmental effect.

This way, the EBRD and RoSEFF support the sustainable financing and implementation of energy efficiency and renewable energy projects by the private sector. Together, the private, residential and public sectors can make a change in the energy consumption patterns and environmental protection.