The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is financing Romania’s Dama Solar project, which is planned to become the European Union’s largest onshore renewable-energy project. The facility in Arad county is being developed by Rezolv Energy and will benefit from Romania’s contracts-for-difference scheme.
A multilateral financing structure
The EBRD will provide a €21.1m senior secured loan as part of a €561m financing package for the construction and operation of Dama Solar. The bank is lending alongside a consortium of more than 10 commercial credit institutions, the International Finance Corporation, the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank and the European Investment Bank. This is project finance rather than a public works procurement award: the project company raises capital from several lenders, while the senior secured facility gives the lender a defined place in the financing structure. The source does not state that the EBRD loan is a grant or that the full package comes from public funds.
Scale and the contracts-for-difference mechanism
Dama Solar is planned as a 1.3GWp photovoltaic project in Arad county and is expected to generate about 1,800GWh of renewable electricity each year. The project benefits from Romania’s contracts-for-difference scheme, which supports investment in renewable-generation capacity. A contract for difference is a revenue-support mechanism: it can give an eligible generator greater certainty around the price used to support electricity investment, subject to the terms of the scheme. For bidders and public buyers, the distinction matters. The arrangement described here is financing for a privately developed energy asset, combined with a national policy mechanism intended to support renewable capacity, not a conventional tender for a government-owned facility.
Nature, skills and local participation
The EBRD says Dama Solar will be its largest renewable-energy installation financed to date and its first renewable-energy financing with a positive impact on nature. The project is expected to deliver net biodiversity benefits through habitat restoration, reserved biodiversity areas and conservation measures for priority species. The bank is also working with the borrower on a skills-development programme, co-financed through InvestEU advisory support and the client’s own resources. It aims to provide training opportunities for at least 300 people from the local community. The programme will also encourage greater participation by women in the energy sector, including awareness and training measures addressing gender-based violence and harassment.
Part of a wider Romanian energy strategy
The project is sponsored by Rezolv Energy, an existing EBRD client supported by Actis and Mubadala. The bank has backed the company since 2024 through renewable-energy investments in Romania, including the expansion of the Vifor wind project in Buzău county to 461MW. The EBRD describes Dama Solar as contributing to Romania’s goals of expanding renewable generation and strengthening energy independence. It is also one of the country’s principal institutional investors. Since beginning operations in Romania in 1991, the bank says it has invested more than €12.9bn across 607 projects, with most investment made in the private sector.
| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| EBRD loan | €21.1m senior secured loan |
| Total financing package | €561m |
| Planned capacity | 1.3GWp |
| Location | Arad county, Romania |
| Expected annual generation | About 1,800GWh |
| Local training target | At least 300 people |
| Vifor wind project expansion | 461MW |
| EBRD investment in Romania | More than €12.9bn across 607 projects |
Dama Solar will be the first EBRD renewable-energy financing with a positive impact on nature, the bank says.
WHY IT MATTERS
Dama Solar shows how a major renewable-energy project can combine commercial lenders, development banks and a national contracts-for-difference scheme. The structure is relevant to suppliers and public authorities because the funding mechanism and the procurement route are separate: the project is privately developed, while public policy supports investment in renewable capacity.
Reported from economedia.ro, 2026-10-01. The Tender Wire is published by Otnox.
