Mihaela Suciu, DEER: “I think we will soon have a problem finding companies to execute the works to modernize the distribution networks”

“Almost half of the end users and almost half of the distribution networks are at Distributie Energie Electrica Romania. We are a big player, but the challenges are directly proportional.

We had an investment program of 750 million lei in 2024. For 2025, the investment budget will be over one billion lei.

In the last 10 years, an enormous amount has been invested in production and very little in distribution networks. We have a real problem here, and what happened in Spain and Portugal is an example. It is clear that Europe is unprepared for the prosumers that will come,” Mihaela Suciu, General Director, Distributie Energie Electrica Romania (DEER) said at Energy CEO Forum organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest.

Key statements:

• At the end of 2023, DEER had 43,287 prosumers and an installed capacity of 549 MW. At the end of 2024, we had 78,540 prosumers and an installed capacity of 910.5 MW. This year we estimate that we will have at least 30,000 new prosumers and another 300 MW. This is happening in conditions where the distribution networks do not have so much money available for modernization.
• We all know that the money related to the investment program is recognized by ANRE in the tariffs. Nothing is free. All modernizations, all expansions are not free but are made with the money of the end users, money recognized by ANRE in the tariffs.
• Many people ask me how to consume cheap energy. The only cheap energy is the unconsumed energy. If you do not consume energy, then you can say that you have cheap energy. Any energy consumed has some costs behind it.
• Household appliances in standby, which are plugged in but which we do not use, have an annual consumption of 4 TW, which means a cost of 530 million euros. We still do not know how to save energy and I think we need much more education in this area.
• The cost of energy distribution is important because this is where network modernizations come from. Everyone wants the networks to be modernized and strengthened for free. There is no freebie, everything is borne by the users.
• DEER is a leader in attracting European funds. We have signed financing contracts worth over 350 million euros at the moment. I think we will soon have a problem finding companies to execute the works to modernize the distribution networks.
• We have a team of specialists within the company that helps us execute the investment works, but it is not enough. I think that in the coming years all distributors will have a problem with the execution of the works, because there will be many projects to be carried out, the execution companies are not enough and we will end up in a deadlock.